Scientists warned, again and again, that extreme weather could devastate NYC

David W. Chen and Mireya Navarro write in The New York Times about warnings that weren't heeded: "For nearly a decade, scientists have told city and state officials that New York faces certain peril: rising sea levels, more frequent flooding and extreme weather patterns. The alarm bells grew louder after Tropical Storm Irene last year, when the city shut down its subway system and water rushed into the Rockaways and Lower Manhattan."