After a hurricane you may have tarps on the roof, debris in the yard, and temporary living arrangements. Be reachable for scheduling, keep keys and IDs ready, and photograph damage before it disappears under repairs.
Last updated: August 16, 2026 · Independent site — not FEMA.
How a useful hurricane visit actually starts
Start outside if it is safe. Roof openings you can see from the ground, missing ridge or covering, tarp locations, tree contact, garage-door failure, and blown-out windows tell the inspector where the weather got in. Then walk the rooms under those failures. Interior stains that line up with a missing section of covering are stronger than a tour of every old ceiling ring in the house.
Unlock the garage, porch enclosure, and utility closet. A locked door is a skipped door. If a tree is still on the house, say so and keep people out of the collapse zone — photograph from a safe angle instead of daring anyone onto a soft roof.
Wind-related damage
Wind work is about the envelope: what opened, what failed, and what got wet because of that opening. Age of the roof is not a crime. Pretending a worn roof was new is. Point at the missing or punctured area and the room beneath it.
- Roof covering loss, punctures, ridge damage (photograph from safe ground when possible)
- Broken windows, doors, screens, and garage doors — a blown garage door often explains a wrecked garage without inventing a second event
- Soffit, fascia, and siding failure
- Tree impact to structure or critical systems
- Interior water stains that line up with roof or window failures
Manufactured and mobile homes fail differently: roof-to-wall connections, tiedowns, and end-wall openings matter. Have title or occupancy proof ready. Do not describe a unit that slid off its stacks as “just some missing shingles.”
Water & surge — say both when both happened
Hurricanes mix mechanisms. Rain through a missing shingle starts high and runs down. Surge or street flooding leaves a line, silt, and soaked lower cabinets. Those are not the same photo set and often not the same insurance policy. Mash them into one vague “the storm ruined everything” and later reviewers cannot tell what they are looking at.
- Treat surge and heavy rain intrusion like flood documentation: water lines, levels, entry points
- Separate "roof leak from missing shingles" from "standing water from outside flooding" when both happened
- If you already filed wind and flood claims, keep both claim numbers available
- More field detail on lines and rooms: flood inspection tips
Temporary repairs are fine — document first
Tarps, plywood, and emergency roof work protect the home. Take photos of the damage before covering it when you can. Keep receipts for materials. Tell the inspector what was temporary and what was permanent repair. A blue roof is not “hiding” damage if you still have the pre-tarp photos and can point at the opening underneath. Permanent repairs with no before-photos are harder. The stain, the leftover debris pile, and neighbor units that were not repaired yet become the file.
Access & scheduling chaos
- Phone numbers change after evacuations — update contact info on the official application site. Missed hurricane appointments are often just a dead cell plan.
- Answer unknown numbers around appointment windows.
- Clear a path through debris if safe; mark hazards (nails, unstable trees).
- If the home is not accessible, follow FEMA guidance; remote options are limited and situational.
- If you are staying elsewhere, have a written representative authorized before the visit if someone else will meet the inspector.
Boats, RVs, and non-standard homes
Some disasters include unique living situations (for example a boat as a residence). Be ready to prove occupancy and point to storm-related damage clearly. If the boat is your primary home, you typically need marina/dock address plus slip or mooring number - not a P.O. Box as the only address. Full path: boat inspection tips. Vehicles damaged by flood or trees: vehicle / Transportation Assistance.
What “insurance first” feels like after a hurricane
Wind and flood often involve different policies. You may get a partial insurance payment, a denial, or a long wait. FEMA Individual Assistance is not waiting to “top off” every cosmetic finish. Keep claim numbers and settlement or denial letters. If a swift FEMA letter says insurance must be resolved first, that is often process - not the inspector punishing you. Read expectations before assuming the field visit failed.
Common mistakes after hurricanes
- Claiming all wear-and-tear as storm damage (old roof age vs missing shingles from this event)
- No photos of the blue roof period before permanent work
- Assuming the inspector will "just know" which tree was the neighbor's problem
- Trying to game water height or interior loss without exterior consistency - see honesty
- Leaving no phone number that works after evacuation - missed inspections delay everything
- Showing a binder of hundreds of near-duplicate photos instead of a short, focused set
Day-of walkthrough tips from the field
- Start outside: roof openings you can see safely, missing siding, tree contact, blue tarp areas
- Then inside under those failures: stains, wet insulation, ruined rooms that line up
- Mention surge or street flooding separately from roof leaks when both exist
- Do not skip the garage, porch, or utility closet if they were hit - but do not invent damage there either
- Status after the visit is only through DisasterAssistance.gov or the helpline - not texting the inspector
Wind vs. water (say both when both happened)
Hurricanes often combine wind damage with rain intrusion and, in coastal zones, surge or street flooding. Those mechanisms leave different evidence. A roof opening with wet ceilings underneath is a wind/rain path. A clear water line on exterior walls and soaked lower cabinets is a flood path. You do not need perfect engineering language—you need not to mash everything into one vague story. Separate photo sets help later when insurance and FEMA ask different questions.
If you already filed both a wind claim and a flood claim, keep both claim numbers available. Inspectors are not your adjuster, but “I have claim #… with…” is useful context when they ask about insurance.
Generators, fuel, and temporary power
After storms, many homes run on generators for days. That is normal and not a problem to admit. Safety first: do not run generators indoors. For documentation, note when grid power failed and when temporary power started if freeze or food-loss questions arise in your declaration. Do not stage a “perfectly powered” house that hides the outage timeline if the outage is part of the damage story.