- It's been almost a full year since devastating hail damage in Fremont.
- I checked in with Mel's Diner and Dier's Ford to see what the recovery process was like as severe weather season approaches.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
Mel's Diner and Dier's Ford dealership were among the businesses hit hard by last spring's hail storm in Fremont. Both are now largely recovered after nearly a year of repairs — but residents and business owners say they are not eager to go through it again.
Dale Lincoln, an employee at Mel's Diner with a decade of experience there, said the recent hail was one of the biggest disasters Fremont has seen.
"We were talking about it today, we said we're just getting back to normal we think, then somebody came and said there's going to be a big storm coming in here and we're going to get hail, we said we don't want any hail we've had enough hail," Lincoln said.
The diner just finished about a year's worth of repairs that cost around $500,000. Insurance covered most of the bill. Despite the damage, customers kept coming through the doors the same week of the storm.
"Everybody knows they can come here and they're treated really good they get good food," Lincoln said.
Customer Ron Widhelm loves to come to Mel's Diner when he's in town and said the extent of the damage caught him off guard.
"I was surprised the way it looked you know it really got beat up in that," Widhelm said.
Across the street at Dier's Ford dealership, body shop staff have dealt with dimpled cars and broken windshields — and are still repairing hail-damaged vehicles from 2 years ago. Body Shop Manager Brett McManigal said the first step for anyone whose vehicle takes a hail hit is simple.
"I always recommend people call the number on their insurance card or get on the app and just start the claim process because until we have that insurance company and that claim number there's not a whole lot we can do," McManigal said.
However there is a lot to consider when filing a claim, including what your deductible is and just how severe the damage is.
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