After the Storm: The Elizabeth Roof Check, in Order

Work from the ground first. Walk the property line with a phone camera: shingles in the yard, debris, dented gutters and vents, and any tree contact, all photographed with the date on the record. From the street, use binoculars or a zoom photo for the slopes; a wet or debris covered roof is not a place for a homeowner in the first day after a storm.

Elizabeth version of the check: after a nor'easter, work the Bayway pattern first. Photograph shingles in the yard and the lifted courses from the street, then check the flat sections in Peterstown and Elizabethport for new ponding at the shingle-to-flat seam, because that seam is where this city's storm water gets in. Date everything to the wind event, not the discovery.

Inside, the check is ceilings and the attic hatch: new stains, a drip line, damp insulation. Note which storm produced them, because leaks surface 12 to 72 hours after an event as trapped water moves, and the claim is filed under the storm date, not the discovery date.

Then decide in order: an open roof or active drip is a tarping call today. Damage you can only see as marks and yard shingles is an inspection this week. Either way, keep the photos and any fallen shingles until the assessment is done; they are evidence, not trash.