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News and Progress Updates
March 2026: Hurricane Ian Team Member Announced as 2026 Oregon State University Distinguished Professor
Dr. Dan Cox has been selected as one of Oregon State University’s 2026 Distinguished Professors. In his nearly three decades at Oregon State, he has conducted large-scale experiments, advanced numerical modeling, and probabilistic risk assessment, which has contributed to shaping engineering practice. He has also provided leadership on the ASCE 7 standard “Minimum Design Loads and Associated Criteria for Buildings and Other Structures” for flood and tsunami load provisions.
Dr. Cox joined the NIST Hurricane Ian research team in January, 2025, to support the storm surge project’s goals of understanding and predicting the impact of surge and wave forces on the built environment. To learn more about the 2026 Oregon State University Distinguished Professor award, please visit https://leadership.oregonstate.edu/speeches-and-statements/announcing-osus-2026-university-distinguished-professors.
March 2026: NIST Researchers Present Hurricane Ian Wind-Related Findings to Asphalt Roofing Manufacturers Association
NIST Hurricane Ian team members, Dr. David Webb and Dr. Karim Abdelwahab, recently attended the Spring Committee meetings of the Asphalt Roofing Manufacturers Association (ARMA). ARMA invited NIST to provide a presentation to their technical committee members on its wind-related work on Hurricane Ian, specifically related to roofing performance. Dr. Webb described NIST’s efforts to evaluate roof cover performance and assess methods to estimate the impacts of rainwater intrusion, while Dr. Abdelwahab described NIST’s asphalt shingle research program, which includes experimental and modeling work designed to drive changes to standard test methods used to evaluate the wind uplift resistance of asphalt shingles. Dr. Tanya Brown-Giammanco, NIST’s Director of Disaster and Failure Studies, noted that “asphalt shingles make up the largest portion of residential roof covers in the U.S. It is important for NIST to make ARMA aware of its research findings regarding their products, and we look forward to continuing to engage with their member experts in the ASTM standards process.”
September 2025: NIST Holds Third Hurricane Ian Workshop Focused on Storm Surge Overland Flow Modeling
At the third Hurricane Ian Workshop, held on September 5, 2025, in Alexandria, Virginia, 25 participants explored the state-of-the-art in numerical modeling of overland flow in the built environment, focusing specifically on the hazard variables of surge, waves, and currents that critically affect structural integrity during hurricane landfalls. The workshop scope included an examination of model complexities and accuracies, ranging from time-averaged models like WHAFIS (used for flood insurance studies) to highly resolved, time-dependent models like OpenFOAM (Open Field Operation and Manipulation) and Delft3D-FM (Delft3D-Flexible Mesh Suite), and their application to events like Hurricane Ian. The workshop included eleven invited technical talks that covered advancements in large-scale (ADCIRC+SWAN) and local-scale (XBeach, Delft3D-FM, OpenFOAM) hydrodynamic modeling, mesh design, subgrid corrections, the inclusion of building footprints and dynamic collapse, wave-current-debris loading, infragravity waves, wind speed transitions, and translating hazard predictions into end-user quantities. Participants engaged in two breakout sessions to discuss (1) research needs for modeling and measurements, and (2) laboratory studies required for model benchmarking. Discussions highlighted that current models show varying degrees of uncertainty in predicting waves and currents, especially in complex built-up areas. Findings emphasized the critical need to include buildings in models to accurately capture velocity patterns, channeling, and shielding effects. Furthermore, discussions noted that novel research has indicated that debris loads can sometimes exceed hydrodynamic loads.
The workshop participants reached a consensus on the need for better field data collection and collaboration between coastal and structural engineers. The conclusions and recommendations synthesized from the discussions resulted in three high priority actionable items intended to yield advancements in overland flow prediction: (1) preparation of a comprehensive, state-of-the-art review paper on existing overland flow models; (2) initiation of an inter-model comparison study for a fixed domain (e.g., Estero Island) with common boundary conditions to identify modeling gaps; and (3) a scoping study for large scale laboratory validation experiments to benchmark numerical model performance against real-world, multi-hazard phenomena.
Once completed, the third workshop report will be published here.
March 2025: NIST Holds Second Hurricane Ian Researcher’s Workshop
A second Hurricane Ian workshop was held on March 17 and 18, 2025, in Fort Myers, Florida, and focused on the state of research for coastal surge and wave hazards, and impacts on the built environment. The 43 participants highlighted lessons learned and technologies developed or leveraged for field reconnaissance efforts. Novel experimental campaigns and numerical model simulations, integrated approaches to capturing primary and cascading hazards, and preliminary work applying these to interactions with the built environment, were all presented. Fort Myers Beach was identified as a test bed to communicate the urgency and importance for collaborative approaches, to share data and information among agencies, researchers, practitioners, and to develop a better understanding of model capabilities for predicting storm impacts from coastal surge and waves. Avenues for future research were identified, including: the exploration and continued development of new technologies (e.g., sensors), methods for capturing data (e.g., surveys), continued laboratory testing (e.g., scaled hurricane surge experiment), and in-situ opportunities.
Once completed, the second workshop report will be published here.
January 2025: Coastal Engineer from Oregon State University’s O.H. Hinsdale Wave Research Laboratory Joins Hurricane Ian Study Team
Dr. Dan Cox has joined NIST as research engineer in the Structures Group to participate in the Hurricane Ian Study. Dr. Cox has a concurrent faculty appointment in the School of Civil and Construction Engineering at Oregon State University (OSU) and is affiliated with OSU’s O.H. Hinsdale Wave Research Laboratory. He was recruited to NIST to contribute to the storm surge effects project as part of the Hurricane Ian NWIRP Study. He brings a wealth of experience in researching coastal hazards including extreme events such as hurricane surge/wave and tsunamis and their impact on coastal communities. Dr. Cox has extensive leadership in the development of codes and standards, and he serves as chair on two committees for the American Society of Civil Engineers: ASCE 7 Chapter 5 Flood Loads and ASCE 24 Flood Resistant Design. His previous projects have led to new understanding of the forces by waves on structures, and the necessary code changes to improve structural design.
Within the Hurricane Ian Study, Dr. Cox’s research focus will be on understanding and predicting the impact of surge and wave forces on the built environment. His work will ultimately lead to improved models for decision-making to reduce coastal flood risk. Dr. Don Slinn, Leader of the Hurricane Ian Study noted “Dan is one of the most accomplished coastal engineers in America. Videos of his lab experiments of waves smashing down 1/3 scale size houses have received over 100 million views on social media, and he has been instrumental in translating engineering knowledge into national and international building codes and standards. We are fortunate to have him join our team, as his insights always point right to key findings.”
To learn more about Dr. Cox and the full Hurricane Ian team, please visit https://www.nist.gov/disaster-failure-studies/hurricane-ian/hurricane-ian-team.
November 2024: NIST’s New NWIRP Director Joins Hurricane Ian Study Team
NIST has appointed a new Director of its multi-agency National Windstorm Impact Reduction Program (NWIRP), Mr. Joel Cline. NWIRP coordinates the research and implementation activities for the four NWIRP agencies – the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), NIST, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the National Science Foundation (NSF) “to achieve major measurable reductions in the losses of life and property from windstorms through a coordinated Federal effort, in cooperation with other levels of government, academia, and the private sector, aimed at improving the understanding of windstorms and their impacts and developing and encouraging the implementation of cost-effective mitigation measures to reduce those impacts.” The NIST Hurricane Ian Study is being conducted under the authorities of NWIRP.
Mr. Cline joins NIST after working for 30 years at the NOAA/National Weather Service (NWS) with expertise in leading lab project portfolios, applying scientific research, and developing and managing teams. His prior work included coordination of policy and procedures to aid tropical forecasting, including outreach, education and training. He worked at the National Hurricane Center (NHC) as a forecaster, lead forecaster, and hurricane specialist from 1987-1996, including during Hurricane Andrew, and as a lead forecaster in the Raleigh, NC NWS office from 1997-2002. His experience includes leading a team to forecast weather for the 1999 World Games of the Special Olympics, the 2002 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games, in Salt Lake City, and as an Incident Meteorologist for western U.S. wildfires. He has held leadership positions in the Pacific Region of the NWS, the Leadership Development Program for the NOAA Administrator, the NOAA Office of Atmospheric Research (OAR) at the Global Systems Lab, and was the Bi-Partisan Infrastructure Law Coordinator for NOAA and the NWS.
In his time at NOAA, Mr. Cline was part of a team which completed a service assessment of Hurricane Michael in 2018 and Typhoon Sudal in 2004, and conducted damage surveys of Hurricanes Bonnie in 1998, and Dennis and Floyd in 1999. While he was at NOAA, he was appointed as a member of the NIST Hurricane Maria Program, where he continues to serve in his new role as NIST NWIRP Director. He has also recently joined the NIST Hurricane Ian NWIRP Study team, where he leads the project focused on evaluating emergency communications methods and effectiveness, leveraging his experience as a seasoned tropical cyclone forecaster and communicator.
“Joel brings a wealth of federal government experience to our team, and his time with the National Weather Service included many activities that overlap with NIST’s ongoing work on Hurricane Ian,” said Dr. Tanya Brown-Giammanco, NIST Disaster and Failure Studies Director. “With Joel on board, we have been able to take additional steps forward in understanding the information the public received about Hurricane Ian’s threats and how the public responded to that information,” she added.
The NIST team expects to release the Hurricane Ian Study report on the impacts of wind damage and rainwater intrusion in buildings in 2026. To learn more about Mr. Cline and the full Hurricane Ian team, please visit https://www.nist.gov/disaster-failure-studies/hurricane-ian/hurricane-ian-team.
October 2024: NIST Hurricane Ian Study Team Recruits Senior Coastal Engineer
Dr. Don Slinn was recruited from the University of Florida, where he was an Associate Professor of Civil and Coastal Engineering, to join NIST and lead the storm surge effects project as part of the Hurricane Ian NWIRP Study. Dr. Slinn joins NIST as a Coastal and Mechanical Engineer in the Structures Group and brings a wealth of experience in researching wind, wave, and storm surge effects, with specializations in the areas of coastal modeling, computational fluid dynamics, littoral processes, and flood mapping. His previous projects include being Lead Scientist for the FEMA Flood Insurance Rate Maps Studies for Mississippi, Alabama and Florida; developing a real-time forecasting system for wind, waves, and surge from tropical cyclones; and studying coastal sediment transport, bedforms, swash zone dynamics, tidal mixing, shore protection, beach erosion, rip currents, alongshore currents, turbulence, and wave forecasting.
Within the Hurricane Ian Study, Dr. Slinn’s focus will be on improving the understanding of wind, wave, and current forces on coastal infrastructure, and he is planning to adapt ADCIRC and SWAN models to include the effects of buildings. His work will ultimately lead to the development of design guidance for national building standards for the coastal built environment to improve resilience for coastal structures during storm surge caused by hurricanes and tropical storms. Dr. Tanya Brown-Giammanco, Director of Disaster and Failure Studies at NIST, noted “NIST is fortunate to have recruited Dr. Slinn to our Hurricane Ian team. The enthusiasm and passion that he brings to advancing storm surge modeling will help inform the design loads needed to the performance of coastal buildings across the U.S.”
To learn more about Dr. Slinn and the full Hurricane Ian team, please visit https://www.nist.gov/disaster-failure-studies/hurricane-ian/hurricane-ian-team.
October 2024: NIST Awards New Contract to Develop a Low Cost, Rapidly Deployable Storm Surge Sensor
Hurricane storm surge and wave research models for the built environment have not been able to be validated, because of a lack of relevant data. Improving building codes and standards so that more buildings can survive landfalling hurricanes requires accurate data on the wind, wave, and current forces in the built environment, but making these measurements over land during hurricanes is very difficult. NIST recently awarded a contract to McQ Inc. and held a kickoff meeting to help define requirements and expectations for a new type of rapidly deployable camera designed to record the effects of hurricanes in the built environment during landfall.
The project aims to design low cost (~$500) cameras that are built to withstand the winds, rain, and sea-spray of a Category 5 hurricane. They will be designed to be strapped on to a fixed object, such as a telephone pole, tree, or balcony, to record video of what happens when surge and waves crash into the built environment along the developed coast. The videos captured by the cameras will have the potential to make measurements of flood height, wave height, wave period, and current speed from debris velocities, requiring just a modest investment per sensor.
September 2024: Materials Science Expert Joins NIST Hurricane Ian Study Team to Study Aging Performance of Roof Shingles
The NIST Hurricane Ian NWIRP Study team has welcomed Dr. Karim Abdelwahab, a postdoctoral fellow at Johns Hopkins University, as its new material science expert. Dr. Abdelwahab’s previous research experience is in structural engineering, adhesives materials, fiber-reinforced composite materials, large-scale testing, light-frame wood construction, and building science. As a Ph.D. student at The Pennsylvania State University, Dr. Abdelwahab’s research was in the fields of seismic hazards and residential construction where he investigated the failure behavior of the air barrier systems used in building envelopes when subjected to seismic displacements. Dr. Abdelwahab conducted an experimental program and developed computational models to define the damage states of the air barrier systems, which allowed him to gain hands on experience in developing and implementing multiscale experimental programs and in adhesive modeling and characterization. As part of the Hurricane Ian team, Dr. Abdelwahab will use his previous work and expertise to support the wind damage and rainwater intrusion in buildings project by designing and implementing a research program for asphalt shingles to provide insights on their ability to resist wind-induced uplift forces after experiencing environmental weathering. NIST Disaster and Failure Studies Director, Dr. Tanya Brown-Giammanco, has previously done extensive shingle performance research and noted that “we are fortunate to have Karim join our team. He brings a fresh perspective and testing experience that will help us continue to understand how shingles change over time, the mechanisms that affect their loading and wind resistance, and how we can better test them to set expectations for how they should perform in high wind events.”
The NIST team expects to release its first report from the Hurricane Ian Study on the impacts of wind damage and rainwater intrusion in buildings in 2026. To learn more about Dr. Abdelwahab and the full Hurricane Ian team, please visit https://www.nist.gov/disaster-failure-studies/hurricane-ian/hurricane-ian-team.
August 2024: NIST Awards Contract to Improve Estimates of Hurricane Ian Wind Speeds
NIST awarded a contract to Applied Research Associates, Inc. (ARA) to develop better estimates of the wind speeds and the overall wind field in Hurricane Ian. Many of the primary weather stations, such as the Automated Surface Observing System (ASOS) located at airports, were knocked offline due to power outages caused by the hurricane and thus did not record the peak wind speeds. ARA will use other data sources such as meteorological data from state mesonets, universities, and private weather networks to supplement data that were available from primary stations. They will normalize observations to account for differences in anemometer height, averaging time, and upwind terrain and exposure, converting measured peak wind speeds into the equivalent standardized three-second peak gusts at 10 m height over flat, open terrain. Wind speeds from this analysis will be directly comparable to design speeds used in modern building codes and standards. This is in contrast to wind speeds reported by the National Hurricane Center, which have a different basis (one-minute sustained winds over open water or unobstructed terrain).
June 2023: NIST Holds Hurricane Ian Data Synthesis Workshop
NIST held a workshop for fifty of the nation’s top hurricane researchers at the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) headquarters in Reston, Virginia to build awareness of recent, ongoing, and planned data collection activities, and availability of Hurricane Ian (2022) data. The workshop included presentations by representatives of a government agencies, academic institutions, and private sector organizations. The focus areas included data sharing on wind, storm surge hazards, and building damage. Secondary areas of emphasis included quantification of storm-generated debris and data collection for studies of hurricane recovery. Workshop participants developed recommendations for data collection and related research in the areas of the natural, built and human environments. Key among these are (1) to foster a collaborative effort in structuring improved data-sharing platforms, (2) identify specific data collection and research opportunities to support development of advances for wind and flood loads and flood load resistance in the ASCE 7 and ASCE 24 standards, respectively, and (3) emphasize hydraulic measurements during storms, especially inland flow velocity and wave height, with a focus on determining wave impact and flood extents, and (4) develop comprehensive building stock data subject to coastal hazard events, to increase damage modeling accuracy.
Once completed, the workshop report will be published here.
June 2023: NIST Informs Federal Advisory Committee about the Hurricane Ian NWIRP Study
NIST’s Disaster and Failure Studies (DFS) Program hosted a hybrid meeting of its National Construction Safety Team (NCST) Advisory Committee on June 14-15, 2023, at its Gaithersburg campus. The meeting included NIST’s response to the Committee’s annual report to Congress, as well as DFS’ programmatic advances. NIST also provided updates on the ongoing Hurricane Maria Program and Champlain Towers South NCST Investigation, and informed the Committee about the recently launched National Windstorm Impact Reduction Program (NWIRP) Hurricane Ian Study. Mr. James LaDue, Acting NWIRP Director in 2022-2023, led the NIST preliminary reconnaissance mission for Hurricane Ian under the NCST and NWIRP authorities, and presented an overview of the event and his observations to the Committee. He also described the new Hurricane Ian NWIRP Study, including its three projects on storm surge effects, emergency communications methods and effectiveness, and wind damage and rainwater intrusion in buildings. While the NCST Advisory Committee does not directly advise on activities undertaken under authorities other than the NCST Act, Mr. LaDue’s presentation served to notify the Committee of the new study, which is supported by the DFS Program, and to convey that the study would not be undertaken as an NCST Investigation.
Information on the other presentations made at the June 14-15 Advisory Committee meeting can be found by accessing the meeting agenda here.