What to Do After Tornado or Severe Storm Damage in St. Louis — A Step-by-Step Guide
On May 18, 2025, a tornado tore through the St. Louis metro and left behind some of the most catastrophic exterior damage we have ever documented — entire roof systems stripped from multi-story brick buildings, parapet walls collapsed, commercial structures exposed down to bare decking. If your property was in the path of that storm, or any severe storm event, what you do in the first 24 to 72 hours determines whether your insurance claim succeeds or fails.
Step 1: Document Everything Before Touching Anything
Before any cleanup begins, walk your property and photograph every piece of visible damage from multiple angles. Roof damage, siding damage, broken windows, downed trees, scattered debris — capture all of it. Do not remove debris or make repairs before your contractor and adjuster have had a chance to document the damage in its original state. Premature cleanup can eliminate evidence your insurance carrier needs to approve your full claim scope.
Step 2: Call a Licensed Contractor Immediately — Not Your Insurance Company First
This surprises most homeowners, but you should call a licensed storm restoration contractor before calling your insurance carrier. Here's why: your contractor will produce a professional scope of loss — a full documented inventory of every damaged component — before the adjuster visits. When your adjuster arrives, they are working against an existing professional assessment, not starting from scratch. This single step is responsible for hundreds of thousands of dollars in recovered claim value for our clients every year. Call us within 24 hours of any storm event and we will be on your property the same day.
Step 3: Emergency Tarping and Temporary Stabilization
If your roof has open penetrations, missing shingles, or structural exposure after a tornado or severe wind event, emergency tarping is not optional — it is legally required under most Missouri insurance policies as a 'duty to mitigate.' Failing to tarp an exposed roof within a reasonable time after the storm gives your insurance carrier grounds to deny subsequent water damage claims. We deploy emergency tarping crews within hours of major storm events at no upfront cost. The tarping expense is a line item in your insurance claim.
Step 4: File Your Claim — Then Let Us Manage the Adjuster Visit
Once you have documentation and a contractor assessment in hand, file your claim with your insurance carrier. When your adjuster is scheduled to visit, make sure your contractor is present at the inspection. Your contractor knows the scope, knows the code requirements, and can walk the adjuster through every line item on the spot. Adjusters who visit without a contractor present routinely miss code-required upgrades, undervalue labor, and exclude legitimate damage items. Our supplement team accompanies every adjuster visit at no charge to you.
What Tornado Damage Looks Like vs. Standard Wind Damage
Tornado damage is categorically different from standard wind damage in both scale and claim complexity. A standard wind event lifts shingles, breaks seal strips, and causes localized loss. A tornado can strip entire roof systems down to the decking, collapse walls, and scatter debris across multiple properties. From our May 18 documentation: we photographed multi-story brick buildings with complete roof system failure, parapets collapsed inward, and structural framing exposed to open sky. These are not repair jobs — they are full rebuilds requiring engineering assessments, permit pulls, and multi-phase construction timelines. If your property sustained tornado-level damage, it requires a contractor experienced in catastrophic loss — not a standard roofer.
The One-Year Window in Missouri
Missouri homeowner and commercial property policies generally give you one year from the date of the storm event to file a claim. For the May 18, 2025 storm, that window closes May 18, 2026. If you have not yet had your property inspected and a claim filed, you are in the final months of your eligibility window. We are still actively working properties from that storm event and can document your damage, file your claim, and begin the supplement process immediately.