David O. Prevatt, Ph.D., professor of Civil & Coastal Engineering, studied the damage caused by Hurricane Ian and said Floridians continue to be slow to make the changes needed to fortify themselves against the costly impacts of storms. “When we rise to the occasion, we learn from our failures,” he said. “I contend that our learning from failure in a context of wind hazards is too slow and the growth of housing — being built in very vulnerable areas — far exceeds our ability to do something about it.”