‘They won’t do anything for us.’

The 4x4 was thrown into a ditch.

The 4x4 was thrown into a ditch. Photo/Sæunn Káradóttir

“Our insurance company has been contacted and some kind of damage report has been filed online,” Sæunn Káradóttir, farmer at Norðurhjáleiga, South Iceland, reports. Hers is the farm that was struck by tornadoes on Friday. “Since we don’t have a so-called storm insurance, they won’t do anything for us.”

The tornado damaged seven buildings and threw a large 4x4 into a ditch. No other farm was affected, and nearby farms didn’t even experience windy conditions.

According to the insurance company’s definition, the farmers themselves are responsible for carrying the cost of the damage, a fact which Sæunn finds shocking. “Of course we sometimes experience bad weather, and we’ve always tried to make sure there is nothing that can blow away, so we can save us the cost of insurance, and until now, it has worked. This, on the other hand, is something you can’t be insured for.”

Sæunn states that she and her husband do not know yet how extensive the damage is, financially speaking. Barns for livestock will have to be fixed by winter.

A meteorologist is expected tomorrow to assess the damage, estimate the wind speed and more. At that point, the couple will contact the Natural Catastrophe Insurance of Iceland. “We think [that insurance] must apply here, although there is nothing stated about it in the law. This has never existed in this country, and of course you can’t be insured against something that doesn’t exist.”

Since Saturday, the couple has been busy repairing fences and picking up loose items. The vehicle remains in a ditch. “The meteorologist we spoke to said that a wind speed of at least 50 m/sec is needed to throw a vehicle like this into the air,” Sæunn relates.

The damage is extensive.

The damage is extensive. Photo/Sæunn Káradóttir

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