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NSBNEWS.net photo by Sera Frederick. Your's truly inspects his collapsed ceiling.
When people think of flooding due to heavy rainfall, saturated yards, driveways and roads overrun with water usually come to mind. My experience with this nasty rain that has dumped more than 16 inches involved my roof. My small wood-frame house on North Dixie Freeway was built in the mid 1920s. In the year's time I've owned it, I allowed debris from the large oak branches over it to collect on the roof. After awhile, that debris breaks down and seeps in. After a rainstorm like this, boom! Water built up above the ceiling and a 1.5 by 1.5 square foot area of it came crashing down Wednesday.
I had the roof patched Thursday and a ceiling repairman is coming Tuesday.
Both are licensed contractors.
New Smyrna Beach police Sgt. spokesman Michael Brouilette sent out a news release about such matters and his advice should be heeded by all: "After the storms pass, residents needing to have any work done to their homes and yards should hire only licensed and permitted contractors. Residents should ask to see the permit and license. If there are any questions, residents should call 424-2114 and the City will check the contractor's status."
This is sound advice. It may be costly to go with a licensed contractor, but your chances of being ripped off or cheated out of your money can be far greater going with some stranger with a knock at the door, looking to make a quick buck at your expense.
There are a lot of lessons that one can learn after a mishap. I've learned the hard way that yard and home maintenance should not be taken for granted. Just because my roof held up nicely during Tropical Storm Fay last year was no excuse to let the roof get cluttered and cause damage.
Two holes were smaller than a golf ball, but even on a pitched roof like mine, water seepage caused by debris can cause damage.