Clean-up continues across Toronto after the record-breaking rainfall that hit the city on Tuesday. Environment Canada reported that 97.8 mm of rain fell yesterday, surpassing the city’s July 16 rainfall record and ranking as one of the city’s top five daily rain events.

Now the Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) is noting that the cost of Tuesday’s damaging flood could surpass $1 billion, according to a report by the Toronto Star. Specifically, yesterday’s flooding event is comparable to the July 2013 flood in Toronto, which cost $1 billion in insured residential and commercial damages (adjusted for inflation) and is considered one of the 10 most expensive natural disasters in Canada by insurance claims.

“It was a similar-sized event as to what we witnessed 10 years ago,” Craig Stewart, vice-president of climate change and federal issues at IBC stated, as per the Star. “We expect the overall cost (of the 2024 flood) to be much more. And that would be because of the damage to city infrastructure — the damage to transit — that occurred.”

The Star noted that the cost of uninsured damage from overland floods is typically much higher than the total amount of insured claims. Historically, in Canada, home insurance policies don’t cover loss or damage caused by overland flooding (for example, rain accumulation on the surface that enters through basement windows or a crack in an above-grade basement wall).

Stewart told the Star that this type of insurance is limited and expensive in the GTA, as it’s not covered by basic policies.

“Because many Torontonians will be uninsured for the loss, they’ll be relying on government bailouts to protect them, or they’ll pay out of pocket,” Stewart said.

Tuesday’s flood led to power outages for tens of thousands of people, with major streets, highways, and TTC trains shutting down (there are even visuals of drivers abandoning their cars and kayaking across the city). As of Wednesday morning, the streets and subways have reopened, and hydro has been restored to the majority of homes and businesses.

An official estimate of total insured damages from yesterday’s flood likely wont be available until next month.