NYS and NYC M/WBE Certified Contractor
The real damage from a storm isn’t always what you can see. Water that pushes in through a compromised roof or a flooded basement doesn’t stop at the surface it moves into wall cavities, soaks insulation, and creates the conditions for mold within 24 to 48 hours. In West Bay Shore, where a large portion of the housing stock was built in the 1950s through 1970s, that water can also disturb asbestos-containing materials or lead-based paint that have been sitting undisturbed for decades. Most restoration companies aren’t licensed to handle that. We are.
When the work is done right, you’re not just back to where you were before the storm you’re more protected against the next one. That matters here. The south shore corridor between Sunrise Highway and the Great South Bay has seen major flooding events in 2012, 2013, and as recently as January 2024, when the mayor of neighboring Brightwaters said it was the worst flooding he’d seen since Sandy. The pattern is clear enough that storm hardening impact-resistant roofing, reinforced siding, hurricane straps isn’t an upsell. It’s the smarter repair.
What you walk away with is a home that’s been fully dried, treated, structurally repaired, and documented for your insurance claim. No chasing multiple contractors. No wondering what’s still wet behind the drywall. No fighting the adjuster alone.
We’ve been operating in Suffolk County for over 12 years, with more than 5,000 completed projects across Long Island. Our CEO Jessica Dussan and VP Leo Torres built this company from the ground up and our names are on every job, not just the invoice.
What separates our team from the national franchise competitors serving West Bay Shore and the Town of Islip area isn’t just experience. It’s the licensing stack. We hold a Suffolk County General Contractor license, a NYS DOL Mold License, a NYS DOL Asbestos License, USEPA Lead certification, and USEPA RRP certification simultaneously. That combination is rare, and in a hamlet full of pre-1978 ranch and hi-ranch homes like those throughout West Bay Shore, it’s often exactly what a storm-damaged property requires.
This isn’t a call center routing your job to whoever’s available. It’s a local team that knows the Town of Islip permit process, understands the building stock along the south shore, and has worked in this specific corridor through multiple storm seasons.
It starts with a call any time, day or night. We dispatch to West Bay Shore and the surrounding Town of Islip area with a response target under one hour. The first priority is stopping the damage from getting worse: tarping exposed roofing, boarding up breached windows or doors, and beginning water extraction if there’s active flooding. Speed in this phase is not a courtesy it’s the difference between a restoration job and a full gut.
Once the property is secured, we move into assessment. Thermal imaging is used to locate hidden moisture inside wall cavities, under flooring, and along the basement slab edges common in the ranch-style homes throughout West Bay Shore. If anything potentially hazardous is identified asbestos insulation, lead paint our licensed team handles it in compliance with New York State DOL requirements before any structural work begins. This step alone disqualifies most competitors from legally completing the job.
From there, structural drying, mold prevention treatment, and permitted repairs are coordinated under a single Suffolk County General Contractor license. The Town of Islip Building Division requires permits for roofline changes and structural repairs, and we manage that process. When the work is complete, you receive full documentation to support your insurance claim organized, detailed, and ready for your adjuster.
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Storm damage restoration in West Bay Shore isn’t a single-service job. A nor’easter that pushes Great South Bay water into a south-shore ranch home can trigger five or six distinct service needs in a single event and if you’re coordinating those separately, across different contractors with different timelines and different insurance paperwork, the process becomes its own disaster.
We handle the full scope: emergency board-up and tarping, debris and fallen tree removal, water extraction and structural drying, thermal imaging for hidden moisture, mold prevention treatment, asbestos and lead assessment where required, structural repair including roofing and siding, interior restoration, and complete insurance documentation. Every phase is covered under the same Suffolk County General Contractor license, by the same team, with a single point of contact throughout.
For West Bay Shore homeowners specifically many of whom are in homes that predate 1978 and sit in a documented coastal flood zone the hazardous materials licensing isn’t a footnote. It’s a core part of what makes us the right call when storm damage goes deeper than the surface. We’re also certified as a Minority and Woman-Owned Business Enterprise by both New York State and New York City, a government-verified credential that reflects the accountability we bring to every job in this community.
Most standard homeowners insurance policies cover wind and storm damage things like roof damage from high winds, broken windows, and water intrusion caused by a storm breaching your home’s exterior. What they typically don’t cover is flooding from rising water, which in West Bay Shore means surge from the Great South Bay. That type of flooding requires a separate flood insurance policy, usually through the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). If you’re in a low-lying area south of Sunrise Highway which includes much of West Bay Shore’s residential core and you don’t have flood insurance, it’s worth reviewing your coverage before the next storm season.
The important thing to know is that the line between “wind damage” and “flood damage” is exactly where insurance disputes happen. A storm that drives water through a compromised roof is typically a covered wind event. Water that enters through a flooded foundation is typically a flood claim. We document damage thoroughly and specifically to support the strongest possible claim under your policy and we bill insurance directly, so you’re not left managing that paperwork during an already stressful time.
Mold can begin developing within 24 to 48 hours of water intrusion under the right conditions and older homes create those conditions easily. In the ranch and hi-ranch homes that make up much of West Bay Shore’s housing stock, water that enters during a storm doesn’t always stay visible. It moves into wall cavities through gaps around pipes and wiring, soaks into wood framing, and collects under flooring where it can sit undisturbed for days or weeks before any visible sign appears.
By the time you see discoloration or smell something musty, the mold colony is already established. That’s why thermal imaging matters so much in this type of home it identifies moisture pockets that look dry on the surface but are actively creating the conditions for mold growth. Getting a licensed team in quickly, with the right equipment, is the only reliable way to prevent a water damage event from becoming a full mold remediation project months later.
Yes, in many cases. The Town of Islip Building Division located at 655 Main Street in Islip requires permits for any repair work that involves a roofline change, structural modification, or significant exterior alteration. This includes a lot of the work that follows storm damage: roof repairs that alter the roofline, replacement of structural framing, and certain siding or window replacements. All work must comply with the NYS Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code and the Town of Islip Code.
This matters because unpermitted repairs can create problems when you go to sell the home or when your insurance company reviews the claim. A contractor who skips the permit process isn’t saving you time they’re creating liability. We hold a current Suffolk County General Contractor license and manage the permit process with the Town of Islip as part of the job, so you’re not left navigating that separately while also dealing with an insurance claim and a damaged home.
It does, and it’s worth taking seriously. Homes built before 1978 which includes a significant portion of West Bay Shore’s ranch and hi-ranch housing stock were commonly constructed with asbestos-containing materials in insulation, floor tiles, roofing underlayment, and exterior siding. They may also contain lead-based paint. Under normal conditions, those materials aren’t a hazard. But when a storm tears off a section of roof, punches through exterior walls, or floods a basement that hasn’t been disturbed in decades, they can become exposed and require licensed remediation before any structural repair work can legally proceed.
New York State requires a dedicated NYS DOL Asbestos License for any asbestos abatement work, and USEPA Lead and RRP certifications for work in pre-1978 homes. Most restoration companies including many franchise operators do not hold these credentials. We hold all of them. If your home was built before 1978 and you’ve had storm damage, this isn’t a detail to overlook when choosing who to call.
We handle it directly. We document storm damage with the level of detail that insurance adjusters require written assessments, thermal imaging reports, photographs, and itemized scope of work and we bill insurance companies directly on your behalf. You’re not left translating contractor language into insurance language or chasing down paperwork while your home is still being repaired.
This matters especially in a community like West Bay Shore, where Hurricane Sandy produced thousands of insurance disputes and many homeowners discovered too late that their documentation wasn’t strong enough to support their claim. Nearly 60% of homeowners don’t fully understand their policy before they file. Having a contractor who knows how adjusters evaluate damage, what language supports coverage, and how to navigate the claims process is a real advantage not just a convenience. Customers have specifically cited this in reviews, noting that our team stayed with them throughout the entire process, including direct communication with their insurance company.
The most practical difference is accountability and licensing. National franchise operators like the SERVPRO franchises that cover the Oakdale and Islip territories are well-known brands, but the crew that shows up is typically employed by a local franchisee not the brand itself and the licensing profile varies by franchise. Many do not hold the NYS DOL Mold License, NYS DOL Asbestos License, or USEPA Lead certifications required for pre-1978 homes in New York. If your home needs those services and your contractor isn’t licensed for them, the work either doesn’t get done or gets done illegally.
We’re a local company with named leadership CEO Jessica Dussan and VP Leo Torres who have been operating in Suffolk County for over 12 years. We know the Town of Islip permit process, we’ve worked on south shore homes through multiple storm seasons, and our licensing covers every phase of the job. For a West Bay Shore homeowner with a pre-1978 ranch home in a documented flood corridor, that combination of local knowledge and full-stack licensing is the difference between a contractor who can complete your restoration and one who has to stop partway through.
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