What to Do in the First 48 Hours After Storm Damage

Big storms move fast. The decisions you make in the first two days after one — what you photograph, who you call, what you sign — affect how the next several weeks go. Here's the order we recommend, drawn from years of post-storm work in both southern Utah and eastern Nebraska.

Hour 0–2: Safety first, then a quick exterior look

Do not get on the roof. Even if it looks structurally fine, a wet roof with lifted shingles or hidden hail damage is dangerous, and roof falls are the most common serious injury we see in the trade. Stay on the ground.

Do a perimeter walk of the house. Look for downed trees on the structure, downed power lines (if you see one, assume it's live and stay back at least 35 feet), broken windows, and obvious roof damage you can see from the ground. If a tree is on the house or the power is out and you smell gas, leave the building and call 911 first, then your utility.

Inside the house, walk every room and look at every ceiling, especially around chimneys, skylights, and bathroom vents. Active drips need to be contained immediately — buckets under the drip, a plastic sheet over electronics or furniture below.

Hour 2–6: Document everything

Before you call anyone, take photos. Lots of photos. Walk the entire exterior of the property with your phone and capture:

• Every elevation of the house, from the ground.
• All gutters and downspouts (hail dents are very visible here).
• Window screens (hail leaves clear marks on screens).
• Air conditioner condenser fins (also a clear hail indicator).
• Garage door panels.
• Any vehicles that were parked outside during the storm.
• Fence sections and outdoor furniture.
• Interior ceilings and walls with any visible water staining.

Hour 6–24: Stop the bleeding

If water is actively entering the house, you need a temporary tarp or other emergency repair before you do anything else. Most homeowner policies actually require you to take 'reasonable measures to prevent further damage' — meaning if you let water keep coming in for three days while you wait for an adjuster, the carrier may deny the additional damage.

Call a local roofer for emergency tarping. We provide tarping when our crew is available — call our Utah office at (435) 236-8179 or our Nebraska office at (402) 276-7083. Save the receipt for any tarping work; it's reimbursable under most policies.

If you can't get a roofer out fast enough, a hardware-store tarp held down with sandbags or 1x3 furring strips is better than nothing. Do not have a non-roofer climb on a damaged roof to install one. Hire a professional or wait.

Hour 12–48: Schedule a roof inspection

Get a local roofer to do a full inspection before you call your insurance company. We've covered the reasoning in our hail damage claim guide — the short version is that you want to know what you're dealing with before you start a claim, so you can decide whether filing makes sense at all.

A good local roofer will: walk every slope, document hail strikes or wind damage with photos and chalk marks, inspect the soft metals (vents, flashings, gutters) that corroborate hail damage, check the attic for daylight or moisture, and give you a written summary you can hand to your adjuster if you decide to file.

Hour 24–48: Call your insurance company (if appropriate)

If the inspection found damage that exceeds your wind/hail deductible and is worth filing, contact your insurance company. Have these things ready:

• Your policy number.
• The date and time of the storm.
• A short description of the damage (your roofer's written summary helps).
• Photos from immediately after the storm.
• Receipts for any emergency tarping or temporary repairs.

What to avoid in the first 48 hours

After every major storm, out-of-town contractors show up door-to-door. Some are fine. Many are not. Things to be wary of:

• Pressure to sign anything on the spot. A reputable contractor will leave a card and let you call back. High-pressure sales tactics are a red flag.
• 'Free roof' or 'we'll cover your deductible' offers. Waiving the insurance deductible is illegal in many states (including Utah and Nebraska) and is generally insurance fraud. Don't sign anything that promises this.
• Assignment of Benefits (AOB) contracts. These sign over your insurance proceeds to the contractor. Avoid unless you have a specific reason and have read the contract carefully.
• Contractors who can't or won't show local references. A working local roofer can name three recent jobs in your area. A storm chaser usually can't.

Hour 48 onward

After the first 48 hours, the urgency drops. The roof is tarped, the damage is documented, and the claim is filed (or correctly not filed). From here, the process is paperwork: scope alignment with the adjuster, scheduling the work, and choosing materials.

If you've followed the order above, you've done the hard part. The actual roofing work is much simpler when the documentation is solid going in.

If a storm just hit your area and you're not sure what step you're on, give us a call. We'll walk you through it — no obligation. Utah: (435) 236-8179. Nebraska: (402) 276-7083.