Two days of severe weather in the Denver area left insurers with a bill for $146.5 million, making the event Colorado's fourth most costly insurance catastrophe on record, according to the Rocky Mountain Insurance Information Association.

From June 8 to 9, golf-ball and baseball-sized hail battered the Front Range. The hail and high winds damaged cars and homes, while heavy rain and hail flooded streets and basements. The foul weather culminated with a tornado the night of June 9.

By mid-June insurers had received 48,000 claims, including 27,393 auto claims and 20,483 homeowner claims. Auto damage is responsible for a majority of the claims, because the hailstorm hit during rush hour, RMIIA noted. "We had a lot of dimpled cars and we also had losses from hail going through the windows," said Carole Walker, the association's executive director. "There were a lot of car dealerships that were hit. They got hit with hail with every car in their lots."

Several companies activated national catastrophe teams and set up emergency claim centers to help speed the process. "Insurance companies are dedicating the extra resources needed to handle the onslaught of claims that continue to pour in on a daily basis," Walker said.

All of Colorado's most costly hailstorms -- including $625 million in insured damage on July 11, 1990 -- have occurred in the Denver metropolitan environs, the most densely populated area in the state. In recent years, however, the region has had a respite from severe storm conditions.

"After several years of escaping with lighter hail seasons, this is a wake-up call that severe weather and hail season are in full swing in Colorado," said Walker. "We generally get three to five damaging hail storms during the peak months of June and July, and they often are accompanied by flash flooding, high winds, and tornadoes." During the past five years, Colorado has averaged 37 tornadoes each year, although they do not always touch down or hit populated areas.