Residents forced to cancel cruise to deal with damage from hailstorm

ERKAN Tastan and his family are still on edge whenever they hear the sound of water since their Beaumont Hills home and cars were severely damaged by the recent hailstorm.

Erkan Tastan and his wife Sengul. Pictures: Carmela Roche

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ERKAN Tastan and his family are still on edge whenever they hear the sound of water since their Beaumont Hills home and cars were severely damaged by the recent hailstorm.

Mr Tastan said it had been a rollercoaster ride since the February 18 storm brought down tennis ball-size hail on to their two-storey home, damaging their roof and two cars.

Their roof is covered with large sheets of plastic to prevent further rain from damaging their home.

Erkan and Sengul Tastan have seen their cars written off and house damaged.

Mr Tastan said he and his wife Sengul had to cancel a cruise to Eden from this week because of damage caused by the continuing rain.

Yet, amid all the gloom — which happened on what should have been a happy day for the family — Mr Tastan said their misfortune was nothing compared with what residents in Queensland faced every year.

“We are very devastated at what has happened to us and I feel like crying while thinking about it,” Mr Tastan said.

“But because of this experience, I can understand better the people who suffer worse in Queensland year in and year out.”

The roofs of several houses in Beaumont Hills are still covered in tarps after the hailstorm. Picture: David Swift

Mr Tastan, who took a day off his bus driving ­duties to cope with the damage at home, said this was the worst they had experienced since moving to Beaumont Hills two years ago from Parklea.

The hailstorm happened on the day their eldest son Burak opened his own barber saloon, Tapered The Barbershop at Quakers Hill.

“My son Burak had been dreaming of opening his own barber shop for years,” Mr Tastan said.

“I received a storm alert from NRMA but I didn’t think it will affect us until my second son, Berkut, went home in the afternoon and called me, saying: ‘Dad, you better come home because things are pretty bad here’.

The Tastan’s home has plenty of leaks after the storm.

Houses in the area affected by storm.

“We then rushed home and found that the windows in the house were damaged while the roof tiles were damaged with water coming down the walls too. Our two cars have been written off while my son’s bedroom is leaking due to the rains and the carpets are damp.

“The morning after the storm, we were so much on edge that when we heard my son showering, we jumped out of bed, thinking it had started raining again and almost panicked.”

Since contacting Rouse Hill Times, Mr Tastan said P & O had offered to refund the money for the cruise.

The hailstorm battered Beaumont Hills, Kellyville and Rouse Hill in particular with insurance claims running into nearly $200 million statewide.