The Western Australian Premier, Colin Barnett has declared the storm which ripped through Perth’s metropolitan area yesterday a natural disaster.

The Fire and Emergency Service Authority has received more than 2,000 calls for assistance and the damage bill is expected to be more than $100 million.

The Premier’s declaration means Commonwealth and State funding can be made available to repair public facilities.

“The declaration of a natural disaster while it as at the lower end does allow for the accessing of both Commonwealth and State funding directed at public services to make urgent repairs and return services,” he said.

It also means affected members of the public can access emergency accommodation, food and clothing.

The Bureau of Meteorology has warned that there could be another storm this afternoon but it won’t be as bad as yesterday.

Meanwhile State Emergency Service crews from the south-west have arrived in Perth to help with the clean up and a backlog of calls from people asking for help.

More than 60,000 homes and businesses across Perth are still without power.

Western Power has been able to restore electricity to nearly 100,000 customers affected by yesterday’s storm.

Most people should have power back by this evening but some may not have electricity for several days while the damage is repaired.

At the height of the storm, more than 150,000 homes lost power as torrential rain and golf-ball size hail hit the city.

Winds of more than 120 kilometres an hour tore roofs from houses and uprooted trees.

Lucky escapes

Applecross man Les Folkl had a lucky escape after a large tree was struck by lightning and collapsed through the roof of his bedroom

“Lucky it fell parallel to the road if it would have gone a couple of degree of angles to the centre it would have gone right over the whole house, it would have split the house in two,” he said.

Steven Bullock is in hospital with a suspected broken foot after falling through a roof during Monday’s storm.

Mr Bullock was trying to patch a roof from water leaking into a house in Yokine.

Hi daughter in law Rachel says his injuries are not too serious.

“My father-in-law was trying to patch up one of the holes in the roof and he’s actually fallen through and broken a table and he’s split his head open, so he’s ended up in Charlie Gairdner Hospital.”

The storm damage at the University of Western Australia was extensive.

Irreplaceable stain glass windows at Winthrop Hall have been smashed in and glasshouses have been destroyed.

The UWA Vice-Chancellor Allan Robson says the university was badly hit.

“We were in the eye of the storm, the hail was incredible, the rain was incredible. There was a lot of water damage, some roof damage. We’re just assessing now exactly what the damage is but it’s considerable,” he said.

Closed

David Mitchell from the Education Department says classes at more than ten schools have been cancelled.

“Ocean Reef Senior High School, Shenton College, Duncraig Senior High School, Heathridge Primary School, Mindarie Senior College, Tuart College, Quinns Rocks Primary School, Lynwood Senior High School and Hollywood Primary School, just in the Pre-Primary and Kindergarten,” he said.

Years 8, 9 and 10 classes at Perth Modern School have also been cancelled, as have classes for year 11 and 12 at Churchlands Senior High School.

Centrelink’s customer service centre at Curtin University and Medicare’s Booragoon and Belmont offices are closed today.

The offices are expected to reopen tomorrow depending on the clean-up operation.

People who need to visit Medicare can go to offices in Fremantle and Cannington.

Centrelink customers have been advised to attend centres in Cannington and Victoria Park.

The Water Corporation says heavy rain from yesterday’s storm has had little impact on dam levels.

Rainfall from the storm, which caused widespread damage, ranged from 79 millimetres at Pingelly, south of Perth, to 58 millimetres at Karnet.

The Insurance Council of Australia has established a special taskforce to deal with the flood of claims expected to flow from the storm.

The Council says it has declared an “insurance catastrophe” and is now working with the government to expedite the processing of claims.