In the wake of Ida's devastating impacts on the region, NYU Tandon School of Engineering professor Dr. Luis Ceferino spoke with News 12 on ways to move forward with natural disasters seemingly happening more often.

Dr. Ceferino researches extreme events and how they impact urban infrastructure.

He says the approach going forward must be multilayered and should include strengthening costal defenses, strengthening public transportation lines from flooding, and preparing buildings to withstand future floods.

“It requires again heavy investment, but still, it requires more the mindset that we have to manage this risk and that is going to come from the city level itself and also it will have to involve our New Yorkers too,” says the professor. “It’s investing in making our cities more resilient for these extreme events.”

Ceferino says investment should include reducing carbon emissions because they will exacerbate climate change – he says it’s all connected.