'Nothing left but the crying': Hail storm destroys pea crops

Hail damages pea crop near Edmonton in minutes A farmer east of Edmonton is upset after a hail storm damaged his pea crops in minutes. CTV News Edmonton’s Jeremy Thompson reports.

The work of a farmer east of Edmonton was crushed in minutes during a hail storm.

What’s worse, Brian Tischler told CTV News Edmonton “they were some of the best crops we have ever seen in a very long time.”

It was all done in five to 10 minutes. The hail blitz also damaged Tischler’s siding and dented his deck.

Tischler said the storm affected about 20 farms in Mannville, a village 170 kilometres east of Edmonton.

All 2,500 acres of his canola, wheat and flax were hit, but not as badly as his pea crops. Tischler estimates the storm cost him $500,000.

“That’s the hard part. You know, you do all this and then Mother Nature comes and just stomps on your dreams,” he said.

With files from CTV News Edmonton’s Jeremy Thompson