Story by Chris Lawrence
HURRICANE, W.Va. — The hailstorm which hit Putnam County didn’t last much longer than a minute Monday evening, but it inflicted heavy damage to a lot of property.
The storm hadn’t been over more than a few minutes before Jeremy Caldwell’s phone started ringing. Caldwell is the owner of Caldwell Insurance Company and the claims were rolling in almost immediately.
“We already had probably 80 claims filed last night,” said Caldwell on Tuesday morning where his office phone continued to ring.
He anticipated by the end of Tuesday there would be more than 500 damage claims, but he added they were ready for them.
“They make a phone call to us and and we file the claim for them immediately. The claims adjustor follows up and we have them back to where they were before they even know it,” he said.
Social media images and video showed the level of destruction of the quick incident. Hail ranging from marbles up to golf ball size pounded roofs and vehicles.
“Hail damage on cars is the majority, but also on homes. Siding has holes, windows have been broken out, but the majority of claims were to vehicles,” he said.
Caldwell said there is only one other time in his years in business when he’s had that many claims in one day. That day was the 2012 Derecho.