Fallen tree on a Long Island cape with the roof being tarped after a storm

After a storm a Northport property is covered in three kinds of debris and they go three different places: the tree, which the town may eventually take from the curb; the pieces of the house, which nobody takes; and the wet material from inside, which has a clock on it. Alec's Construction cuts, hauls and clears all three as part of the repair rather than leaving you to find a dumpster in the week every dumpster on Long Island is spoken for, working out of the yard on Barton Avenue in East Patchogue.

What a Storm Does in Northport

Northport floods from the harbour before anything else happens. The Village's Main Street runs downhill to the water at the head of Northport Harbor, and the harbour-front — the park, the dock, the bottom of Main Street — takes water in a northeast blow on a high tide in an ordinary storm; in a hurricane the water is in the buildings at the foot of the hill. The residential village climbs the hills on both sides in older frame houses under big street trees, and up there the storm is wind and limbs: shingles lifted at the eave on the Sound-facing slopes, the old maples and oaks down across porches and service drops. The Village of Northport runs its own building department for the village; East Northport and the surrounding hamlets file with the Town of Huntington.

Downtown Debris, Hillside Trees

Along the harbour the debris is what the tide brought into the downtown and the waterfront blocks. Up the hill it is trees: big crowns across driveways, limbs across garages, root plates in the lawns. Hauling out of the steep lots and the narrow village streets is half the job.

Trees and Limbs

A tree on the ground is a chainsaw job and a matter of time. A tree on a structure is a different job with an order to it, and it comes off before anything else on the property is touched. We cut and haul what the town will not take, and we tell you what your town is doing that week for curbside brush.

Roofing, Siding and Building Debris

Shingles, vinyl siding, aluminum gutters, fence sections, broken glass, the pieces of whatever the wind took apart. It is sharp, it has nails in it and it hides under wet leaves. Photographed where it lies before it is moved, because it is evidence of what the wind did to the house.

Wet Material From Inside

This is the debris with a clock on it: wet carpet and pad, wet insulation, sheetrock that has lost its strength, soaked furniture. Mould can begin on any of it within a day or two. It comes out, it is photographed as it comes out, and it is kept where the adjuster can see it.

Emergency tarp over a damaged roof section on a Long Island house

Hazards We Work Around

Downed lines and anything touching them — the utility first, always. Gas. Trees under tension. Nails and glass under mud. Wet floors over electrical. Cleanup is what gets the crew to the house; the scope and the rebuild are the job that follows.

Building Department in Northport

The Village of Northport runs its own building department at 224 Main Street, (631) 261-7502, separate from the Town of Huntington. Emergency work to make the house safe and dry does not wait for a permit; the permanent repair is filed once the scope is agreed.

Free walkthrough in Northport. Call or text (631) 312-7441. Tell us whether the roof is open, whether a tree is on the structure and whether there is water inside, and we bring the right equipment on the first trip.

Frequently Asked Questions

Our Northport house is up the hill from the harbour. What does a hurricane actually do to it?

Wind and trees, not water. Above the harbour-front the surge is not the problem; the wind off the Sound hits the north-facing roof planes and gable ends directly, and the mature street trees over the older frame houses drop limbs onto porch roofs and through slate and shingle. The recurring damage we find is at the eave — the first courses lifted, the drip edge gone, and rain driven back under into the soffit and the top of the wall — and it is documented and repaired as a homeowners claim.

Will the town pick up storm debris?

After a major storm most Suffolk towns and villages run curbside brush and storm-debris collection for a period, with rules about how it is cut, bundled and placed. They take what is at the curb; they do not take a tree off a roof or building material out of the house. We tell you what your town is doing that week and take what they will not.

Do you haul the debris or do I need a dumpster?

We bring the hauling as part of the job. After a storm every dumpster on Long Island is committed for weeks, and leaving homeowners to find a container is how cleanup stalls.

Can I throw out the wet carpet and drywall before the adjuster comes?

Yes, and you should. Leaving it in place grows mould and makes the claim worse, and emergency mitigation is expected under the policy. Photograph it in place first, photograph it as it comes out, and keep it where the adjuster can see it if there is room.

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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

No cost, no obligation. We reply the same day.