'This is very dangerous': A light pole outside where the Chicago White Sox play is rusted out and could come down
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Only on 2.
Days until the home opener at White Sox stadium - a potential danger. Outside an entrance, there are rusted out light poles where thousands of fans walk by.
One is in danger of falling right now. CBS 2's Steven Graves spoke to an expert. A worker at CBS 2 walks by these poles often. He noticed something was off and he was right.
And the expert said the city needs to take action now. With a slight wind on Monday and a little bit of sway of the light pole...
"No, I don't feel safe," said Dr. Gongkang Fu.
Fu walked away from the pole, worried.
"It's moving," Fu said, adding that it needs to be replaced.
"They need to do it immediately. They need to do it immediately," Fu said.
Before the longtime engineer and professor at the Illinois Institute of Technology came to that conclusion, CBS 2 had him inspect the pole on 35th Street right outside Guaranteed Rate Field.
It's where next Tuesday, the home opener for the White Sox, where thousands of people should not be driving or walking by it. A rusted base with holes that he can stick his finger through.
The Chicago Department of Transportation (CDOT) said it inspected the poles last week. The White Sox said it is working with CDOT to ensure safety.
"This is very dangerous from a structural engineering point of view. It can come down any minute," Fu said.
A rusted base with holes that he can stick his finger through. Out of the more than two dozen light poles on this block, a city audit found four with major damage or rust. That was back in 2018. It's unclear if any were replaced.
"Yeah, that's steel. Rusted steel."
There's steel Fu found not visible from outside the poles. Corrosion, he said, was eating away at the inside. Rust possibly from snow and salt accumulation.
"Somebody needs to inspect it from inside to see what's left," Fu said. "Because they are in the same situation as this one in terms of snow exposure and salt."
Meaning there's a chance more could end up like this in the future. For years, the CBS 2 Investigators have highlighted real dangers of falling poles. One with a rusted base fell on a woman's car late last month.
After CBS 2 flagged the Chicago Department of Transportation about the bad pole outside Guaranteed Rate Field, a spokesperson said it will be replaced by Opening Day.
As for the others, they said a paint job should suffice for now. The city said the last inspection of the pole was last week.
