9 months later, Dunrobin tornado victims still can't move back home
Grace Campbell says she has spent $5,000 in experts to evaluate damage to her home
When a ferocious tornado ripped a large hole in the roof of Grace Campbell's Dunrobin home last September, she never imagined that almost nine months later her family would still be living in a rental home while she awaited repairs.
But Campbell is locked in a battle with her insurance company, Desjardins Group, over repairs done to the two-story house, whether the home is structurally sound and, ultimately, how much the insurer will cover.
The dispute has left Campbell's family in limbo, unable to complete extensive repairs to the home they say are needed before they can safely move back in.
"It would have been easier if we had completely lost the house than having it like this," she said.
"At least if we had lost the house we would have been starting from scratch versus now we still have no progress and we're at square one."
Campbell and her husband Stephan bought the two-story brick-and-siding house on Grasshopper Lane in 2015, and a year later they did major renovations to create their dream home.
The tornado that hit their neighbourhood on Sept. 21, 2018 — one of six to hit the region that day — tore a hole in their roof and blew the siding, eavestrough and soffits off one side of the house.
The priority was covering the roof, but Campbell says three roofing companies sent by the insurer covered it with tarps that kept blowing off, and it wasn't until Oct. 11 that the roof was properly tarped.
In that time rain had fallen and poured into the house and damaged the home's three bathrooms, Campbell said.
"It was like running a bathtub – it was like, literally, I had turned on the bathtub faucet, and that's what we heard coming in from the ceiling," she said.
The hole was eventually covered with plywood and shingles in December, Campbell said.
'I would hear nothing'
Campbell said the insurer sent experts to determine the extent of the water damage and used industrial dryers to get rid of the moisture. But she said no repair work has been done.
"I was constantly calling them and I keep proper notes and I would hear nothing," she said.
In December, the Desjardins insurance adjuster sent Campbell an itemized statement on what repairs they were willing to pay for. But the couple didn't agree with the estimate.
Early in 2019 the Campbells hired an engineering company and a window expert to completely assess their home.
The engineering firm, Estructura, said the home was structurally compromised due to a damaged roof truss and a crack in the foundation.
It also said the damage to the siding exposed the interior of the home to the elements and because it wasn't fixed right away, it caused the wood components to warp.
High humidity levels because the house has been vacant also damaged the walls, window and door frames, the firm said.
Campbell said Desjardins had its own engineering study done and it didn't find any damage to the roof truss and concluded the house is structurally fine.
So the deadlock continues.
Desjardins spokesperson John Bordignon would not address Campbell's specific case, but said in an email that his company has closed 75 per cent of the 1,120 claims filed after the September 2018 tornadoes from clients in Ottawa and Gatineau and are "working diligently daily to close the remainder."
Disputes about the damage to a home will lengthen the claims process, he said, because subsequent engineering reports are required.
Mould growth
In the meantime, the Campbells and their two children, after a brief stay in a hotel after the tornado, have been living in a nearby rental house.
Every day Campbell or her husband has to visit the house to check to make sure the sump pump in the basement and the generator are working.
But Campbell says she can no longer go down there as the walls are sweating with condensation and it bothers her allergies.
"If I go down in the basement it's like breathing needles and my eyes get all itchy," she said.
The couple hired an air quality expert who took samples from throughout the home to be tested.
Shawn Rankin, the owner of Indoor Air Quality Ottawa, said he found mould growth in several spots in the house.
"It certainly smells mouldy in there and it's feeding on the wood in the house," he said.
He's recommending a complete gutting of the basement perimeter walls.
Campbell said she's spent $5,000 hiring experts to assess her house because she has lost faith that her insurer will pay to fix the house properly.
"We're watching it become more and more damaged due to their inaction," said Campbell, breaking down. "It's heartbreaking."