Museum Fires Not Related To Each Other - Or So They Say

By Alicia Dorr in Arts & Entertainment on Dec 14, 2006 4:17PM

Apparently there was not one but a whopping TWO fires in museums yesterday, leading us to hatch all sorts of hair-brained conspiracy theories in our museum-lovin' noggins. But as none of them are founded on any evidence, we'll just set the scene for you.*

11:00 am - Firefighters on the South Side save a kitten from a tree.

11:15 am - An urgent call of distress comes from the Museum of Science and Industry. An overheated transformer has caused an electrical fire in one of the exhibits.

11:16 am - Firefighters weigh the pros and cons of saving an exhibit. They ultimately decide to head out on the off-chance that it's those chicks hatching that are in danger.

11:17 am - The Museum of Science and Industry personnel put out the fire.

11:20 am - Firefighters arrive on the scene to find no fire, but stay around awhile to "ventilate" the area. And by "ventilate" we mean that they hung out at the exhibit. It wasn't the chicks hatching, but it was the beloved "The Great Train Story," a 3,500-square-foot model train layout that depicts a small train moving on a scale model of the actual routes between Chicago and Seattle. It's definitely their new favorite exhibit.

12:30 pm - Firefighters get an urgent call of distress from the DuSable Museum, also on fire and also on the Southside.

12:31 pm - Firefighters debate over who DuSable was.

12:32 pm - Tom Hanks appears with a frightfully unappealing long haircut and says they are all in danger. Do they really think these two fires are a coincidence?

12:35 pm - Firefighters arrive at the museum and put out curtains that were on fire in an empty auditorium with a single shot from their big hose. DuSable museum workers didn't put out the fire, but that doesn't make them any less brave than MSI ones - right? Right?

12:40 pm - Peace returns at last to the South Side.

*Everything, aside from the fires themselves, is pretty much empty speculation.

Photo via Museum of Science & Industry website.