The damage bill from the devastating hail storm that hit Mildura recently has passed $100 million and is expected to climb higher. New figures from the Insurance Council of Australia reveal that the storm, which hit Victoria's Sunraysia district and communities in NSW and South Australia, has already generated about 20,000 insurance claims, with insurance losses so far estimated at $115 million across the three states.

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="620"] Wine grape grower Russell McManus with some some severely damaged wine grape vines on his property near Mildura. Photo: Darren Seiler[/caption]

But the final toll is likely to be higher, given some damage is not insured. Campbell Fuller from the Insurance Council said it is expected to "take several months for the full extent of the losses to be known". The storm, considered by Mildura locals to be the worst hailstorm to hit the district since the 1970s, destroyed or seriously damaged more than 24,400 hectares of Victorian crops in one of the state's key food-producing districts. It left 21,004 hectares of field crops (including grain and legumes) destroyed or seriously damaged, with other key crop losses being table grapes (1489 hectares of losses), wine grapes (1238 hectares), nuts (226 hectares), dried fruit (168 hectares) and stone fruit (83 hectares). "I'd say that approximately 75 per cent of our properties are wiped out. The remainder would have damage to a lesser extent, simply because our properties are spread out over an area," he said. "It will have an effect on next year's crop as well, because it's damaged the buds on the canes for the following season." "The unfortunate part about that is this year we made a decision to purchase a new grape harvester. So we're committed to go ahead with that deal, but unfortunately we've lost a lot of our work that will help repay it," he said. Mr McManus estimated that the storm will cost him  "hundreds of thousands of dollars". Mildura mayor Glenn Milne said farmers hit badly by the storm needed "cash support from government" and that it would have a "huge impact" on the region. Source - http://www.theage.com.au