Last week, rain hammered New York City, filling the subways and the streets—and I was in the basement level of my apartment, frantically attempting to stem the waters coming in. I wouldn’t wish dealing with floodwaters in your home on anyone. It’s a terrifying, expensive, and often disgusting experience: During Hurricane Ida in 2021, when floodwaters inundated the city, my family watched, paralyzed, as water came flooding out of our toilet. On Friday, our weather apps in New York warned us of se