Storm Damage Roof Repair in Pompano Beach, FL
Hurricane Irma in 2017 put three tornadoes on the ground in Broward County, two rated EF-1 and one EF-0 near Oakland Park, while most of the county sat in sustained winds of 65 to 70 mph with gusts from 80 to 100. Roofs that looked fine before a storm like that can come out of it with missing edge metal, torn corners and wet insulation. Storm damage is rarely one big hole. It is a dozen small failures spread across a roof, and the building owner usually finds out about them one stained ceiling at a time.
Our job after a storm is to find every one of those failures quickly, stop the water, and then repair the roof so it holds up through the next round. If the weather has just moved through Pompano Beach, FL and you are wondering what it did to your building, this is where we start.
First Look: what we check once the sky clears
We do not walk onto a roof while lightning is still in the area, and we do not guess at conditions from the parking lot. As soon as it is safe, the first pass looks at three things: where water is getting in right now, what has been lifted, torn or thrown, and whether any part of the roof is unsafe to stand on. A soaked deck, a buckled panel or a section of membrane billowing loose can all change how a crew moves across a roof.
On big buildings, a drone survey speeds this up, since it can cover acres of low-slope roof in a fraction of the time and keeps people off wet surfaces. Where interior leaks are already showing, an emergency dry-in goes first, with tarps or temporary membrane over the worst openings, and the full assessment follows once the building is protected.
What the Wind Leaves Behind: the damage you can see and the damage you cannot
Wind goes after edges, corners and anything that sticks up. The usual findings include coping and edge metal peeled back or gone, membrane lifted at the perimeter, flashing torn from walls and curbs, and rooftop equipment shifted on its mounts. Debris does its own harm. A flying board or a chunk of loose gravel can puncture a membrane, and broken skylight domes leave openings straight into the building.
The quieter damage is the stuff that looks intact. Fasteners can pull partway out of a deck, a seam can open an inch without any visible tear, and a membrane can be lifted and set back down in place with its bond broken. Those problems show up months later as leaks that nobody connects to the storm. We probe seams and press on the membrane by hand because the camera misses them, and that habit is part of any wind damage repair write-up.
What the Water Leaves Behind: wet insulation and clogged drains
A hard afternoon storm tests every drain on the roof, and the water finds the outlets that were already partly blocked. Leaves, torn membrane scraps and storm debris end up in the drain bowls, ponds form, and the weight and the standing water start working on seams and flashings. Fort Lauderdale recorded roughly 26 inches of rain on April 12, 2023. After a major downpour, inspect the affected roof's drains, scuppers and overflow paths for blockage or damage.
Once water gets under the membrane it soaks into the insulation and stays there. A roof can look dry on top and be saturated below, which is why we pair visual checks with an infrared moisture scan when a storm has been severe. Finding wet insulation early means cutting out a small area instead of replacing a large one later.
Not Only Hurricanes: the quieter storm damage of an ordinary summer
Plenty of roof damage in Broward never involves a named storm. The stretch from mid-May to early July is the stormiest part of the wet season, with damaging thunderstorm winds, tornadoes, lightning, hail and flooding all on the table. A single squall line can lift a seam, rip a loose flashing or knock out a rooftop unit's sealant, and another one rolls through the next afternoon.
That repeated pounding is why we treat every wet-season storm as worth a look when a roof is already tired. Small damage left alone through two or three storms turns into a larger repair, and the building ends up paying for it in tenant complaints, ruined ceiling tile and equipment that gets wet. After any storm that left debris on the roof or water on the floor, a short walk beats a long wait.
Temporary Then Permanent: how repairs are sequenced
Repair follows a sequence. First comes the dry-in, which stops the water. Next comes a written scope that lists every damaged area, with photos and measurements. Then permanent repairs get scheduled around the weather, the building's tenants and the availability of materials, which can run short when a storm has hit the whole county at once.
Permanent work matches what is already on the roof. A torn single-ply gets a heat-welded or adhered patch of compatible membrane, a displaced coping run is re-fabricated and fastened to current standards, and wet insulation is cut out and replaced before the membrane closes over it. Repairs on a roof in Broward County's High Velocity Hurricane Zone have to use components with Miami-Dade approvals, so we do not substitute materials just because they are on the truck. On the hangars and shop buildings at Pompano Beach Air Park and the large distribution roofs around Park Central, the rule is the same: the repair must hold in the next storm, not just the next day.
Records and Claims: documenting the damage while it is fresh
Insurance adjusters want dated photos, locations and a clear description of what the storm did versus what was already worn. We write that up as part of the assessment, with every damaged area marked on a roof plan. If the building is part of a claim, insurance claim assistance builds on those same records, and when a hurricane is the cause, the same records carry into hurricane damage repairs.
Keep the receipts for any dry-in work and save the interior photos of damage. If you manage a warehouse in Park Central or any other park in the city, the sooner the record exists, the easier the conversation with the carrier.
Questions We Hear Often
How soon after a storm should my roof be checked?
Within a day or two, once it is safe to be up there. Water that sits under a membrane spreads fast, and every extra afternoon storm makes the damage harder to separate from the original hit.
Can a roof be damaged if nothing is leaking?
Plenty of it. Lifted seams, loosened fasteners and bruised membrane often hold water out for weeks, then fail in the next downpour. A walk and a moisture scan find them before the ceiling does.
Should the repair wait for the adjuster?
Stop the water first. Dry-in work protects the building, and policies generally expect an owner to limit further damage. We photograph everything before and after, so the permanent repair can follow the claim without losing evidence.
What if the whole county needs roofers at once?
Active leaks and unsafe roofs go to the front of the line, and we triage the rest by risk. Temporary protection buys time when materials are short, so the building stays dry while permanent work waits its turn.
Does storm repair need a permit?
Often, yes, and in Broward's High Velocity Hurricane Zone the products have to carry Miami-Dade approvals. We confirm what applies to the scope before work begins and handle the paperwork.