Chicago Weather Watch

Two Chicago Icons Threatened by Recent Rain

What do Star Trek and Mies Van der Rohe have in common? Record rain and flooding.

Heavy rains and flooding over the weekend threatened two iconic buildings in the Chicago area –the Farnsworth House along the Fox River in Plano Illinois, and the Sears/Willis Tower in downtown Chicago.

The Farnsworth House is a masterpiece of modernist architecture designed by Mies van der Rohe between 1945 and 1951. At the time, the site along the Fox River was a rural area, and the elevated design could accommodate the spring rains and rising Fox River.

Since then, the area has become much more built up, and the flooding is more severe. Here is an article about the recent flooding at the Farnsworth House, as well as a striking image of the dark Sears/Willis Tower and the Chicago skyline.

The Sears/Willis Tower was also affected by the recent rains. Flooding along Lower Wacker Drive also flooded the basement of Sears/Willis Tower, causing a power outage to the entire building, which houses the transmitters of many TV stations, including WCIU, Channel 26.

Its sub-channel–Channel 26.4 is the home of the Heroes and Icons Channel, which features re-runs of all the Star Trek shows 6 nights a week. There was NO SIGNAL on Monday night, after the rain and flooding on Sunday.

Today, Wednesday, I am happy to report that the TV signals are back, and the flood waters are receding by the Farnsworth House.

There is more rain in the forecast for the Chicago area. This may turn out to be the wettest May on record!

Filed under:
architecture, history, seasons, weather

Tags:
Farnsworth House, flooding, Sears/Willis Tower