Current Status…Hail Damage to RV and Truck

Posted on by Julia

May 19, 2024

We are staying in Ellis, KS on our way to Denver. This afternoon, around 2:20, the town sirens went off, warning of severe thunderstorms and possible tornadoes. The alerts sounded on both our phones, warning of severe thunderstorm with hail up to three inches.

Bruce grabbed Nox and then we ran to the bathrooms as they also act as a storm shelter. Bruce got hit on the head by a piece of hail; luckily, he was wearing his bump stop cap. He covered Nox’s head with his hand to make sure her head didn’t get hit.

A policeman drove by making sure the RVers had taken shelter.

Once we were under the porch roof of the shelter, we watched as half inch sized hail pounded our RV. We couldn’t see the truck. Then, as we watched, the hail sized increased to one and a half inches to two inches across.

Hail Falling

Bruce handed Nox to me and took a video of the hail. Poor Nox was shivering and shaking.

Once the hail stopped, the police drove past to let everyone know it was safe. We headed back to our truck.

Fog Rising from the Ice
Hailstone

We first checked out our truck. It is covered in dents and the windshield is cracked in four places on the passenger side.

Dents from Hail

After seeing the damage to the truck, we were expecting some damage to the RV. In walking around it, no windows were broken. A side light was broken and the utilities side was covered with grass and dirt the hail splashed up.

Bruce climbed on top of the RV to see if the roof was okay. All three air conditioners had the covers broken, the two fan covers were shattered, and the sky light was shattered. The slide toppers had holes punched through them. The rear back up camera lost its antenna. The solar controller cover was smashed. The cover for the WiFi antenna was broken. The awning covers are damaged. The metal edging that makes a curve from the roof to the wall is covered with dents.

Side Light
Slide Topper
Missing Antenna
Covered in Grass and Dirt
Holes in Gutter
Broken Air Conditioner Cover
Smashed Air Conditioner Fins

We went inside the RV. Water had come in through the broken fan covers and the skylight.

Kitchen Fan from Inside
Stovetop with Water Dripping In
Bathroom Fan from Inside
Skylight
Water Dripping from One Corner of Skylight

Bruce climbed back up onto the roof to use plastic garbage bags to cover the vents and skylight. He tapped down a garbage bag over the skylight and had me close the fan covers once he placed a garbage bag around the inside of the fan cover.

Bruce Tapping Down Garbage Bag to Cover Skylight

I mopped up all the water from the bathroom and kitchen using microfiber rags.

Nox wanted to go out and explore the world. She was very interested in the hailstones.

I called the insurance company and got the claims process started. The insurance adjuster will call us before coming by in Dakota Ridge RV Park in Golden, Colorado.

We will be continuing our trip to Golden, Colorado tomorrow.

30 thoughts on “Current Status…Hail Damage to RV and Truck”

  7. I will just add my condolences to everyone else. What a mess–so glad you had a place to shelter however. I hope the aftermath works out well and you can get back on the road soon.

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  11. Oh my gosh. We recently had such a forecast and were so relieved the hail ended up being pea size. That is horrible to have that much damage and then what happened next to add insult to injury. Some days the RV life can be rocky. Just glad everyone is safe.

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    1. Thanks for the sympathy. On Sunday, we were just grateful we were okay. On Monday, it had sunk in how much damage we took. The truck maybe totaled. We’ll see what the insurance says. We’ve been through hail storms with much smaller hail and took no damage. The brakes on the trailer going out was scary.

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  14. Oh my gosh. Those bad storms were all over the news. What a bummer to have damage to your RV and truck, but I guess it could have been worse if you had had a direct hit by a tornado.

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Published by Julia

I am a retired software solutions architect. I have been married to my husband, Bruce, for over forty years. We have a 12-pound dog, Nox, who we love dearly. She has been with us since 2009. We went full-time RVing for 3.5 years and saw much of the United States. We bought a ranch house on a hill in the middle of five acres. We are working on creating our homestead. I love cooking and enjoy sharing recipes. I am also an artist and I’ll share my current projects. Reading is my favorite hobby.