Why did these Florida towns escape the wrath of Hurricane Ian?

Sign up to the Independent Climate email for the latest advice on saving the planet Get our free Climate email Get our free Climate email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Building better buildings Punta Gorda is located on Florida’s southwest coast, close to where Hurricane Ian made landfall with winds raging up to 150 miles per hour and storm surge of at least twelve feet. open image in gallery Charlotte High School in Punta Gorda, Florida needed to be rebuilt after Hurricane Charley in 2004, but stands intact after Hurricane Ian While Hurricane Ian did cause an immense amount of damage in some parts of Punta Gorda, many newer buildings seemed to avoid the worst of the storm. Both communities were right near the centre of the storm as it made landfall, but they’re both also “barrier islands”, the kind of long, thin islands that often line ocean shores. open image in gallery A rescue worker searches for Hurricane Ian victims in Fort Myers Beach on Tuesday “This is a Hurricane Katrina-scale event, where you’re having to rebuild everything, including the infrastructure,” Jesse M Keenan, a real estate professor at Tulane University, told the Associated Press.