Storm Damage Checklist: What to Do in the First 24 Hours

First: assume every downed line is live

This is the only rule that matters more than all the others combined. A fallen power line can energize a fence, a wet lawn, a puddle, or the tree itself — and it does not have to be arcing or sparking to be lethal.

Stay at least 30 feet away, keep children and pets inside, and call Eversource. Do not touch the tree, do not move branches near the line, and do not let anyone approach it to take a photograph.

Second: get everyone out of the fall zone

A tree that's already fallen isn't necessarily done moving. Hung-up limbs, partially uprooted trunks, and trees leaning against structures all carry enormous stored energy and can shift without warning.

If a tree is resting on your roof, leave the rooms directly beneath it. If it's leaning on the garage, don't go in for the car. Nothing in there is worth standing under a loaded trunk for.

Third: photograph everything before anything moves

Insurance adjusters work from evidence, and cleanup destroys it. Before a single branch is moved, take more photos than you think you need.

• Wide shots showing the whole tree and the structure it hit
• Close-ups of every point of damage — roof, siding, gutters, fence, vehicles
• The root plate and trunk base, especially if it uprooted
• Any interior damage such as ceiling leaks or cracked drywall
• A timestamped photo of the date on your phone or a newspaper in frame

Fourth: call your insurer, then call a tree service

Open the claim before cleanup begins so the adjuster knows the sequence of events. Most policies cover emergency removal when a tree has struck a covered structure — your house, garage, shed, or fence — and cover the resulting repairs.

A tree that simply falls in the open yard usually isn't covered, even if removing it is expensive. Knowing that up front saves an unpleasant surprise later.

What not to do, under any circumstances

Every winter someone in Connecticut is seriously hurt doing one of these:

• Cutting a limb that's under tension — it releases with enormous force
• Working a chainsaw from a ladder, ever
• Climbing onto a roof to deal with a tree resting on it
• Cutting anything within reach of a power line
• Cutting a partially uprooted trunk, which can spring back upright

What a professional crew does differently

Storm work isn't normal tree work. The wood is loaded in unpredictable directions, the structure underneath is already damaged, and the goal is to remove the tree without adding to the loss.

That means rigging the trunk before cutting it, taking weight off the structure in sequence rather than all at once, and knowing which cut to make first so the load moves the way it's supposed to.