Restoration crew at a storm-damaged Long Island house

Alec's Construction handles hurricane and storm damage in Brookhaven, Suffolk County — fallen trees, flooding and water damage, roofs and siding torn open, the cleanup and the rebuild — as one job from the first tarp to the finished repair, working out of the yard in East Patchogue. If the roof is open, a tree is on the house or there is water inside, call or text (631) 312-7441 rather than fill in the form, and tell us what you are looking at.

What a Hurricane Does in Brookhaven

The hamlet of Brookhaven — the old village at the mouth of the Carmans River, not the town that took its name — is low, wet and old. The river opens into Bellport Bay here, the Wertheim marsh wraps the south side, and the streets off Beaver Dam Road and South Country Road run down to the water on ground that is only a few feet above it. A surge comes up the river and across the marsh at the same time. The housing is some of the oldest on the South Shore — shingle and clapboard houses from the 1800s and early 1900s on stone and brick foundations, with full basements that fill — mixed with 1950s and 60s ranches nearer the highway. The old houses have big trees that were planted with them.

Surge From the Bay

On this part of the South Shore the water is the storm. A south or southeast wind pushes the Great South Bay up every creek and over every bulkhead at once, and the streets south of Montauk Highway take it into crawl spaces, slab additions and first floors built at grade. It is salt water, and salt water is a different cleanup from rain: everything electrical it touched is replaced rather than dried, the sheetrock and insulation below the water line come out, and the framing is dried with equipment and metered before it is closed. It is also a separate claim — a flood policy, not the homeowners policy — and we scope it separately from the wind damage on the same house.

What We Handle After a Storm

  • Fallen or damaged trees — the tree on the roof, the limb through the porch, the leaner against the wall. Structural check first, then removal in the right order, then the repair.
  • Flooding and water damage — surge, rain that came in through the roof, the basement that filled. Wet material out, real drying equipment in, moisture measured before anything is closed.
  • Interior and exterior storm damage — roofing, siding, windows, soffits, gutters, ceilings, walls, floors and insulation.
  • Storm cleanup and debris removal — cut, haul and clear, so the repair crew can get to the house.
  • Repairs to damaged areas — from a tarp on the first day to the finished rebuild, one crew, one scope, one point of contact.

The Order of Work

  • Make it safe. Nobody goes under a tree on a roof or into a room with a sagging ceiling until it has been looked at. Downed lines are the utility's, and they get called first.
  • Photograph everything as found. Before a limb is cut or a wet carpet is pulled. This is what both claims rest on.
  • Stop the water. Tarp the roof, board the openings, pump and pull the wet material that will grow mould if it stays.
  • Dry and document. Drying equipment in, moisture readings taken and kept.
  • Write the scope line by line with the photographs attached, storm damage kept separate from wear, wind damage kept separate from flood damage.
  • Rebuild to the agreed scope, and correct what let the storm in so it does not repeat.
Storm-damaged Long Island roof being tarped for an insurance claim

Homeowners Policy, Flood Policy and the Hurricane Deductible

Wind damage, and the rain that came in through it, is a homeowners claim. A tree on the house is a homeowners claim, and most policies pay something toward removing that tree, up to a limit that varies by policy. Water that rose — from the bay, a canal, a creek or a river — is a flood claim under a separate flood policy, whether National Flood Insurance Program or private, and the homeowners policy generally excludes it. Many coastal New York policies also carry a hurricane deductible that is a percentage of the dwelling coverage rather than a flat figure, and it applies when a named hurricane triggers it. We do not adjust claims; we document and scope the damage so the adjuster sees what the storm did, and we tell you which of the three buckets each item belongs in before you file.

Building Department in Brookhaven

The hamlet of Brookhaven files with the Town of Brookhaven at Independence Hill in Farmingville; the streets south of Montauk Highway along the Carmans River and Bellport Bay are in the mapped flood zone. Emergency repairs to make the house safe and dry do not wait for a permit. The permanent repair that follows — structural work, re-roofing, electrical — is permitted work like any other, and we file it once the scope is agreed.

Free walkthrough in Brookhaven. Call or text (631) 312-7441.

By the job in Brookhaven: Tree Removal · Flood Cleanup · Storm Debris · Storm Roof & Siding

Frequently Asked Questions

My Brookhaven house is over a hundred years old. Does that change the storm repair?

It changes what is behind the wall. Old houses here have balloon framing, plank sheathing, horsehair plaster and stone or brick foundations that take water differently from a 1960s ranch, and the repair has to match what is there rather than what a modern house would have. Photographs as found, wet plaster and lath out where it has failed, the framing dried and metered, and a scope that names the actual materials so the adjuster prices the right thing.

Do I need a permit for storm repairs?

Not for the emergency work. Tarping, boarding, shoring, pumping and drying make the house safe and do not wait for a permit. The permanent repair — structural work, re-roofing, electrical, anything that changes the building — is permitted work like any other job, and we file it once the scope is agreed with the carrier.

How do I avoid storm chasers?

Ask for a local address and a local phone number, ask how long they have worked on Long Island, and do not sign anything at the door — not an assignment of benefits, not a deposit. Out-of-state crews arrive after every hurricane and leave before the roof leaks again. We are on Barton Avenue in East Patchogue and have worked Suffolk County since 2018.

Is a fallen tree covered by insurance?

A tree that falls on the house, the garage or another covered structure is the classic covered peril under a standard homeowners policy, and most policies also pay something toward removing that tree, up to a limit that varies by policy. A tree that fell in the yard and hit nothing usually is not covered. We photograph the tree where it lies before anyone cuts it.

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Also Serving Brookhaven

Work With Alec's Construction

This guide is written by the crew that does the work. See Alec's Hurricane & Storm Damage Repair service — fallen trees, flooding, roof and siding damage, cleanup and the rebuild. Licensed and insured on Long Island, one crew start to finish, free walkthrough and a written estimate inside 48 hours.

Booking the cold months now: we also handle Roofing and Storm Damage & Insurance Restoration.

Get a Free Estimate from Alec's Construction

Licensed and insured, working across Nassau and Suffolk County since 2018. We come out, look at the actual job, and put a written number in your hand — no pressure, no obligation.

Or call (631) 312-7441

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