Question: New York was severely affected by what that included the flooding of the New York City Subway system, which casued an American arts promoter and former museum director to  launched an initiative called "CultureAID" ?
Context: In the New York metropolitan area, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) operates the New York City Subway, which is mostly manually operated.  The subway system currently uses Automatic Block Signaling with fixed wayside signals and automatic train stops.  Many portions of the signaling system were installed between the 1930s and 1960s.  Because of the age of the subway system, some replacement parts must be custom built for the MTA, as they are otherwise unavailable from signaling suppliers.  Additionally, some subway services have reached their train capacity limits and cannot operate extra trains with the current Automatic Block Signaling system. MTA Bus Time, stylized as BusTime, is a Service Interface for Real Time Information (SIRI) automatic vehicle location (AVL) and passenger information system provided by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) of New York City for customers of its bus operations under the New York City Bus and MTA Bus Company brands.  First tested in late 2010 and officially launched in early 2011, MTA Bus Time was installed in all MTA bus routes in New York City by 2014.  The software uses GPS technology equipped in buses to relay real-time location information to passengers via internet-enabled devices (particularly smartphones), SMS messages, or countdown clocks installed at bus stops.  Similar to the technology used for countdown clocks found in the New York City Subway system (called Subway Time), the project is the successor to multiple attempts by the MTA to install positioning technology for buses, going back to 1996. Abram Stevens Hewitt (July 31, 1822January 18, 1903) was an American teacher, lawyer, an iron manufacturer, chairman of the Democratic National Committee from 1876 to 1877, U.S. Congressman, and a mayor of New York City.  He was the son-in-law of Peter Cooper (1791–1883), an industrialist, inventor and philanthropist.  He is best known for his work with the Cooper Union, which he aided Peter Cooper in founding in 1859, and for planning the financing and construction of the first subway line of the New York City Subway, for which he is considered the "Father of the New York City Subway System". The New York City Subway is a heavy-rail public transit system serving four of the five boroughs of New York City.  The present New York City Subway system inherited the systems of the Interborough Rapid Transit Company (IRT), Brooklyn-Manhattan Transit Corporation (BMT), and the Independent Subway System (IND).  New York City has owned the IND since its inception; the BMT and IRT were taken over by the city in 1940.  The former IRT system is now known as the A Division, while the B Division is the combined former BMT and IND systems. Since the opening of the original New York City Subway line in 1904, and throughout the subway's history, various official and planning agencies have proposed numerous extensions to the subway system.  The first major expansion of the subway system was the Dual Contracts, a set of agreements between the City of New York and the IRT and the BRT.  The system was expanded into the outer reaches of the Bronx, Brooklyn, and Queens, and it provided for the construction of important lines in Manhattan.  This one expansion of the system provided for a majority of today's system. New York City Subway nomenclature is the terminology used in the New York City Subway system as derived from railroading practice, historical origins of the system, and engineering, publicity, and legal usage.  Important terms include "lines", or individual sections of subway, like the BMT Brighton Line; "services", like the B, which is a single train route along several lines; and "stations", such as Coney Island–Stillwell Avenue, which connects multiple lines and services. The Independent Subway System (IND or ISS), formerly known as the Independent City-Owned Subway System (ICOS) or the Independent City-Owned Rapid Transit Railroad, was a rapid transit rail system in New York City that is now part of the New York City Subway.  It was first constructed as the Eighth Avenue Line in Manhattan in 1932. Tom Finkelpearl is an American arts promoter and former museum director who serves as commissioner of the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs.  He was appointed in 2014 by New York City mayor Bill de Blasio.  As commissioner, he oversees city funding of nonprofit arts organizations, and is leading an effort to promote cultural diversity in arts programs citywide.  His department is in charge of a $156 million budget.  His approach to arts has been described as populist and he sees art and artists as making a valuable contribution to the overall economic health of the city.  In the aftermath of hurricane Hurricane Sandy, he launched an initiative called "CultureAID" to "formalize the essential role artists and arts organizations played in relief efforts".  He is working with city authorities on efforts to provide affordable housing for artists living in the city.  He said "every corner of this city needs to have art."  He introduced a program to offer free access to member institutions using a municipal identification card.  Finkelpearl served for 12 years as director of the Queens Museum from 2002 to 2014.  While serving as director, he hired community organizers to emphasize the diversity of the immigrant population.  He presided over the museum's $68 million renovation effort.  He doubled the size of the Queens Museum and saw its budget grow from $2.3 million to $4.9 million.  He served under mayor David Dinkins and Rudy Giuliani by running the city's "Percent for Art" program.  He graduated from Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts in 1974, from Princeton University in 1979 and from Hunter College (MFA) in 1983. The New York City Subway is a rapid transit system that serves four of the five boroughs of New York City in the U.S. state of New York: the Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, and Queens.  Its predecessors—the Interborough Rapid Transit Company (IRT), the Brooklyn–Manhattan Transit Corporation (BMT), and the Independent Subway System (IND)—were consolidated in 1940.  Since then, stations of the New York City Subway have been permanently closed, either entirely or in part. New York was severely affected by Hurricane Sandy in 2012, particularly New York City, its suburbs, and Long Island.  Sandy's impacts included the flooding of the New York City Subway system, of many suburban communities, and of all road tunnels entering Manhattan except the Lincoln Tunnel.  The New York Stock Exchange closed for two consecutive days.  Numerous homes and businesses were destroyed by fire, including over 100 homes in Breezy Point, Queens.  Large parts of the city and surrounding areas lost electricity for several days.  Several thousand people in midtown Manhattan were evacuated for six days due to a crane collapse at Extell's One57.  Bellevue Hospital Center and a few other large hospitals were closed and evacuated.  Flooding at 140 West Street and another exchange disrupted voice and data communication in lower Manhattan.
Answer: Hurricane Sandy