Monday’s devastating storm in southeastern Alberta has some families facing the daunting task of rebuilding and putting the pieces of their lives back together after losing nearly all of their possessions. The strong wind turned normal objects into projectiles that blew up houses, damaged vehicles, sent at least one garage airborne and sent people running for cover. The devastating storm produced funnel clouds, but as of Wednesday, no tornadoes had been confirmed in the area outside of Medicine Hat. Aerial view of damage to Ryan DePape’s home in Cypress County, Alta. after a July 18 storm. Ryan DePape was outside his Cypress County home with his six-year-old and four-year-old sons Monday afternoon when the storm appeared to come out of nowhere. “We were playing and then it quickly got dark and raining and windy,” DePape said. “I put them in, bolted the house. I sent them down and as soon as that happened a wind came from the south and blew every window, broke every window on the main floor and sent glass on the main floor. “At that point, debris — two-by-fours, shredded two-by-fours — came through the windows. It basically went through the house and it’s still sticking to the interior drywall right now. One went right past me, so (I) went under down there, under the stairs, just to get out of it.’ A two-by-four was housed in a wall inside the DePape home in Cypress County, Alta. after a July 18 storm he projected the piece of lumber into the house at great speed. The wind blew through the bay doors of DePape’s three-car garage and turned the structure into a makeshift kite, launching it into the air before dropping it to the ground below. Vehicles inside, including boats and ATVs, were destroyed and the gas line was severed. “The noise (from the storm) was tremendous,” DePape said. “You couldn’t really see anything coming. It almost formed on top of us. We were just, we were in it. There was no warning. Within a minute it happened.” Aerial view of the damage to the DePape family’s garage in Cypress County, Alta. after Monday’s storm. DePape holed up in the basement with his sons and tried to remain calm and composed while answering their questions as they waited for help. Some of his colleagues arrived within minutes of receiving his message and helped the family out of their home as the wind had finally calmed. He soon realized that a significant amount of the debris strewn outside was not his and had come from his property. “The trailer windows, that metal, all those two-by-fours, I think they came from a construction site, maybe across the street from the dolly,” DePap told CTV News Calgary while touring the wreckage Tuesday. “And many of my things have passed through the fields to the north.” DePape says he’s lucky his family and neighbors weren’t seriously injured in the storm. “There have been no hospital visits, the family is safe, everyone in the surrounding areas is safe. All these other things can be replaced. I mean, we’ve poured our heart and soul into this place, so it’s kind of heartbreaking to you get it.But yes, everything can be replaced. “We’ve just gone through the ruins and the baby books and the old family photos and stuff, but it looks like a long way to go.” The family has contacted their insurance agent but it is not known how much the damage will cover. DePape expects he won’t be able to return home until the fall. Irrigation equipment was damaged in a field along Highway 523 in southeastern Alberta after a July 18 storm.
