Calgary airport says hail damage repairs to take at least 18 months

The Calgary Airport Authority says it will take at least a year and a half to fix part of its domestic terminal that was hammered by hail earlier this month.

It says Concourse B and its gates 31 to 40 will be closed while restoration work is done.

In a statement,Chris Dinsdale, the authority's president and CEO, said there should be no impact to travellers while the work is ongoing.

"We have been able to accommodate all flights through other parts of the terminal," he said.

The airport authority says it doesn't know how much the repairs will cost.

A swath of north Calgary was pummelled by hail on Aug. 5, with chunks shattering car windows and scraping siding off homes.

Chris Miles, chief operating officer of the airport authority, says golf ball-sized hail punched through the membrane of the terminal's roof, and then heavy rain poured in.

"Early investigations have shown that Concourse B, located in the Domestic Terminal Building, sustained very significant damage," he said in a statement.

"We have completed the initial remediation work and are now developing a comprehensive plan to repair the roof and interior of Concourse B.

Despite the closure of the concourse, the authority says other parts of the terminal are fine and operations shouldn't be disrupted.

According to them,no guests or airport staff were injured during the storm, but several commercial aircraft at Calgary International Airport were damaged.