Allan Patton, the RDOS director for rural Oliver, said most of his apple crop was wiped out, and other growers were impacted as well.

“The apples really suffered in the hail, and the storm killed most of the soft fruits for the rest of the summer,” he said. “It’s pretty devastating for those who got hit, especially the apple growers.”

The strong storm Thursday afternoon, flooded streets, downed trees and damaged crops from apples to peaches and grapes.

Patton (seen here on his orchard during blossom time) said it was most severe close to Oliver, but he also was hit hard at his place on  Road 9, south of the town.

“It was just one wicked localized storm,” he said. “We got pummelled by high winds and hard hail. It was basically a white out.  I couldn’t even see my barn.”

Since then, a crop insurance adjuster has tested his most fragile variety, the Aurora Golden Gala.

That crop is pretty much wiped out, with 65 per cent culls, and he can see significant damage to the rest on his six acre apple orchard.

At this point, he is not worried about the stormy weather in the forecast for the rest of the week, because the damage has already been done, he said.

“If another one comes, I am not worried anymore,” he said. “Sometimes you try to salvage what you have left, but it is almost better to have it completely wiped out.”

With files from Castanet