https://phys.org/news/2019-01-barrier-island-sand-dunes-recover.html

Chris Houser, a coastal geologist at the University of Windsor, Canada who presented the findings, experienced Hurricane Ivan the day after he'd arrived in Pensacola, Florida in 2004. Houser witnessed the damage caused to barrier islands along Pensacola and loss of dune fronts, which motivated him to study the sand dune recovery process in the aftermath of storms.

"We wanted to know how quickly narrow sections of the island recover compared to wider sections with bigger dunes," he said.