What to Do About Roof Damage After a Forsyth County Storm

What kind of damage do Forsyth County storms actually cause?

Severe thunderstorm warnings for Forsyth County have cited gusts of 60 to 70 mph and quarter-size hail, along with wind damage to roofs, siding, outbuildings and trees. In practice that means lifted or missing shingles, torn flashing, impact marks, and limbs or whole trees that land on a roof.

It helps to separate the three ways a storm reaches a roof. Wind pulls at shingles from the edges and ridge, so the first things to go are the shingles along the eaves, the rake and the peak. Hail strikes from above and leaves marks that are often hard to see from the yard. Trees and limbs add weight and impact, and they can bend roof framing, crack decking and tear the covering all at once.

The county has a record of all three. The warnings that have gone out for Forsyth named Winston-Salem, Lexington, Thomasville, Kernersville and Clemmons, and described the wind as capable of damaging roofs, siding, outbuildings and trees. The remnants of Hurricane Helene in September 2024 brought down trees and an awning in Winston-Salem, and one tree fell on a home on Oak Ridge Drive.

None of that tells you what happened to your roof. That is why the plan below starts with looking and recording, not repairing. For the repair side of the job, the pages on storm damage roof repair, wind damage repair and hail damage repair describe what the roofer does at each stage.

What should you do in the first hour after the storm passes?

Wait until the storm has moved through, check that everyone is safe, then walk the property from the ground. Photograph what you see, keep clear of downed wires and leaning trees, and do not climb on the roof. If water is coming in, protect belongings and call for a roofer.

The first hour is for safety and records. Anything that has fallen on or near the house may have brought a power line with it, so stay well back from wires and anything touching them, and call the utility rather than the roofer about those. A tree that is leaning on the house can shift again, so treat the area underneath it as off limits.

Then document. Start with wide shots of each side of the house and the yard, so the debris and the building are in the same frame. Move in to close-ups of missing shingles, bent gutters, dented vents and anything on the ground that came off the roof. Photograph inside as well if there is a stain, a drip or wet insulation, and keep the time stamps on. You are building a record that a roofer can price from and an insurer can read.

A phone call to a roofer at this stage is reasonable. Describe what you can see from the ground, and say whether water is entering the house. The contractor you reach will tell you what they can do and when a crew is free, and Winston-Salem Roofing cannot promise a time.

• Keep everyone away from downed lines, leaning trees and the area under damaged eaves.
• Photograph all four sides of the house, then the debris, then the damage in close-up.
• Move belongings away from any drip and put a container under it.
• Do not walk on the roof, even to look; a roofer can look from a ladder or the deck.
• Write down the date and time of the storm, and what you saw and heard.

Do you need a tarp on the roof, and who puts it there?

A tarp is a temporary cover over an opening, meant to limit water entry until a permanent repair can be done. It is worth asking about when shingles are missing, decking is exposed or a tree has punched a hole. A roofer places it; you should not climb up to do it yourself.

A tarp that is installed properly is held down with fasteners to the roof structure and runs over the ridge or past the damaged area so water cannot run under it. A tarp that is merely thrown over the roof will flap, tear and let in as much water as before. That is a good reason to leave the installing to someone who works on roofs, and to see the page on emergency roof tarping for how the visit goes.

Be realistic about timing. After a widespread wind event, roofers are busy across the Triad, and a tarp visit is booked when a crew is free, not on a promise. If water is entering and nobody can come soon, move belongings, protect electronics and put buckets out. Interior damage grows with every hour of wetness, so it is worth keeping track of what you do and what it costs, for your records.

A tarp is not a repair. It buys time, and the permanent work still has to be scoped, quoted and scheduled. Ask the roofer to tell you plainly what the tarp does and does not cover, and how long they expect it to hold.

How do wind, hail and tree damage differ when you look at the roof?

Wind leaves lifted, creased or missing shingles, especially at edges and the ridge. Hail leaves impact marks on shingles and dents on soft metals like vents and gutters. Trees leave punctures, broken decking and sagging framing. Knowing which you have helps you describe it on the phone and in a claim.

The table lists what each tends to look like from the ground and what the roofer checks up close. It is a guide for describing the damage, not a way to decide whether a roof is sound, which only a trained look can do.

What should you ask before you sign anything?

Ask for a written quote that names the work, the materials and who pulls any permit. Ask whether the contractor is licensed or registered, then check that with the NC Licensing Board yourself. Be wary of any promise to get a claim approved or to take care of your deductible.

Storm days bring out offers, some from people you have never heard of. The simplest protection is to slow down and ask for things in writing. A real quote lists what will be repaired or replaced, what the materials are, and what the price covers. It does not depend on the claim being approved, and it is not a number someone made up on the porch.

Licensing is a place where Winston-Salem homeowners should be exact. North Carolina issues no roofing licence of its own. Work at $40,000 or more must be done by a general contractor licensed by the North Carolina Licensing Board for General Contractors, and a Specialty Contractor - Roofing classification exists for roofers working under that amount. We claim no licence for any roofer on this line, so check the one in front of you with the board. Our guide to North Carolina roofing licence rules lays out how.

Then ask about the permit. Re-roofing needs a building permit in Winston-Salem; patching or replacing a few shingles typically does not. The permit guide for Winston-Salem roof replacements explains the difference. Whatever the roofer tells you, you can confirm it with the Forsyth County Inspections Division at (336) 727-2624.

• A written quote naming the work, the materials and the permit plan.
• How the contractor's licence or registration can be checked with the issuing authority.
• Whether the price changes if the roofer finds more damage once the covering is off.
• What the contractor needs from you to start, and when they expect a crew to be free.
• Nothing about your insurer: the claim is between you and the company, and no roofer can promise how it ends.

What about the insurance claim?

If you have homeowner's insurance, contact your insurer to open a claim and ask what they need from you. We can say what is useful to bring, such as photographs, dates and the roofer's written scope, but we cannot say whether any claim will be approved or what it will pay.

A claim is a conversation between you and your insurance company. The documents that tend to help are the ones you already started making: dated photographs of the damage, a note of when the storm happened, and a written description of the repair from a roofer. If you had to tarp or protect belongings, keep those receipts too.

A roofer can describe what they find and what a repair involves. A roofer cannot decide whether a claim is covered, and nobody on this line will promise that it will be. Be careful with anyone who talks as if the outcome is settled before the insurer has looked.

If an adjuster visits, ask what happens next and when, and keep your own copy of what you are told. If you disagree with a decision, your policy will describe the next step. For anything about the policy itself, your agent or insurer is the right person to ask.

When is a roof inspection worth doing even if nothing looks wrong?

After a storm with large hail or strong gusts, a roof can be damaged without any visible sign from the ground. A roof inspection gives you a written picture of the condition, which is useful before the next heavy rain finds a weak spot. It does not promise any insurance result.

Hail is the clearest case. Quarter-size hail has been cited in Forsyth County warnings, and its marks are often not obvious from the yard. A bruised shingle may look fine until the next soaking rain, when water starts to work through it.

An inspection has a second use after a storm: it gives you a baseline. If you later need to describe what changed, a dated written condition report helps. See the page on roof inspection for what the visit covers. If your storm brought a tree down, the companion guide on fallen trees and ice storm damage to Triad roofs goes further on what to do in that case.