Local body shops, roofing companies kept busy after hail storm

CHRISTIAN COUNTY, Mo. – Roofing companies and auto body shops across the area are staying busy the day after Wednesday’s storms and likely will be for weeks.

Hundreds of people in Nixa and Ozark are dealing with hail damage to their homes and cars.

Brent Clarkson, co-owner of Ozark Body Works, said they will be working to fix the damages potentially for over a month as people continue bringing in their cars.

“When we came in, we probably had 30 plus assignments,” Clarkson said. “And then it’s just been a pretty steady flow of customers in and out all day long, which is pretty typical in a storm like this.”

Tom Rogers with Midwest Roofing said they have gotten over a hundred calls already.

“From whenever the sun comes up till the sun goes down until we can get everybody assessed, we’re going to be out here to take care of them,” Rogers said.

Large hail was forecasted Wednesday, May 8, and the storms delivered reports of hail up to four inches in diameter. Several people in the path of that storm are trying to get their homes and cars fixed now.

“Anytime you just see like leaves on the ground, like we’re seeing here, you know that some pretty significant hail has fallen,” Rogers said.

Rogers said gutters and shingles are almost always damaged in a storm like what hit the Ozarks.

“We’re seeing golf ball, even some places, some tennis-ball-sized hail,” Rogers said. “When that strikes a shingle, no matter what type of shingle it is, it’s going to do damage.”

Clarkson told OzarksFirst their phone had been ringing off the hook.

“We’ve been through this multiple, multiple times,” Clarkson said. “That’s not good necessarily for everybody, but it’s good for everybody in the sense that this isn’t our first rodeo.”

Rogers said even his roof was damaged.

“My wife saw that I’d made a comment that ‘looks like I’ll be the last one getting a roof because I got to take care of everybody else,'” Rogers laughed. “She wasn’t super thrilled with that.”

“Do your best to protect your property,” Clarkson said, “and if something happens, that’s where businesses like us are here to help you through it.”

Both businesses told OzarksFirst it’s better to get an assessment done on the damage before you decide to file a claim, that way if it’s not bad you don’t have a blemish on your insurance.

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