MCKINNEY, Texas — Families in Collin County are hoping Wednesday’s expected storm doesn’t bring a repeat of what happened in late March. Hundreds of cars were damaged and dozens were totaled after heavy hail tore through McKinney.
Kandace Catalane is the new owner of a 2018 Nissan Maxima, though she really wasn’t planning to buy a new car. On Sunday, March 24th, Catalane had just returned from vacation when she watched the storm pummel cars in her apartment complex parking lot.
“Just ice everywhere, it was like a river. It was insane,” Catalane said. “First it started out real smooth, pea size. Then as the storm intensified it became real jagged. Just really intense hailstones that felt like they were coming at like 90 miles per hour.”
“Every car, every window was broken,” Catalane said. “My car, the entire back windshield was completely shattered, the front windshield completely shattered, and I just had dents everywhere.”
She wasn’t alone. Many of her neighbors experienced the same thing.
“When everybody came out after the hailstorm had hit it was like looking at a disaster zone, people were like, 'Where do I even start?'” Catalane said.
Thankfully she said a check from her insurance helped her buy a new car, but now she waits for another possible storm.
Just a few miles down the road, the McKinney Audi dealer is also hoping the next storm doesn’t them hard. In that last storm, hundreds of their vehicles were damaged.
But as Collin County waits to see what this next storm will bring, Catalane knows one thing for sure. Her car will be parked inside.
“It will be parked at my sister’s place. Covered garage parking,” Catalane said with a smile. “I’m just going to take really good care of it and protect this new investment.”
