MESA, AZ — It was nearly a year ago, but the memory is still fresh for Luis Ibarra as we walked through his backyard in Mesa.
"We just started hearing the wind pick up and then the crunching of the shingles and the wood getting lifted," Ibarra said.
His house was one of many in Mesa hit by heavy rain and destructive downburst winds in July of 2023.
Ibarra says a portion of his roof was ripped away, leaving the attic exposed, and the heavy rain flooded his backyard.
“The rain was coming down hard, it was coming down heavy, and pretty much it was like Noah's Ark, the whole chicken coup was flooding," Ibarra recalled.
Those powerful winds left more than 13,000 people without power that night.
Severe thunderstorms were firing up in the East Valley that evening, bringing a huge wall of dust, flooding rain, hail, and powerful downburst winds.
Downburst winds happen when the rain falls, cooling the air inside of the storm. That cold air sinks, rushing out from the base of the cloud. When it hits the ground, it spreads out in all directions.
Wind gusts could reach as high as 100 miles per hour, tearing down anything in their path. It can happen anytime, with little warning during the monsoon.
It’s a time of year when Jeff Guthrie, Co-Owner of Phoenix Roofing and Repair, says his call volume goes up.
Guthrie says that sometimes downburst winds are so powerful that damage is inevitable.
“Unfortunately, when you have a 90 or 100 mph microburst that directly hits the roof, there's not a heck of a lot that you can do," Guthrie said.
But he says there are things you can do to try and minimize the risk to your home or roof.
Guthrie recommends getting a free roof inspection before the season begins and evaluating trees on your property that could pose a danger when the winds hit.
“If they're not pruned and trimmed the right way and they've got stuff that's starting to die and branches that are more susceptible to breaking and falling on the roof and creating damage in that way, that's something to get ahead of as well," said Guthrie.
Typically, basic homeowner’s insurance covers wind and hail damage but Guthrie says that it’s important to read the fine print in your policy because insurance may not cover the entire cost of replacement, based on the age of the roof.
Christel Bell with the Let ABC15 Know Team also recommends that you do your research before hiring someone to make repairs after a storm hits.
She says that it’s important that you take a lot of photos and document everything.
She also recommends that you compare the out-of-pocket cost versus the cost of filing through insurance, as that could save you some money.
Lastly, she says that you should ensure that the company you’re hiring is insured, registered with the Registrar of Contractors, and has good reviews, otherwise, you could end up in a costlier situation.
Luckily, Ibarra, his family, and his chickens made it through the storm unharmed, and his homeowner’s insurance covered his roof damage.
But Ibarra says that he never underestimates the power of our monsoon storms.
