New system to light up Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum
Field of Empty Chairs to glow again after repairs
BY TIM HENLEY
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Published: October 27, 2009
The Field of Empty Chairs at the Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum will soon glow with the help of a new wiring system.
The final phase of the project to rewire the chairs began this week. Although the wiring work has been completed, the memorial’s facilities and construction staff began installing concrete and pipes at the base of the chairs Monday.
The $60,000 project is expected to be complete Nov. 9, depending on weather conditions, the national memorial’s
Executive Director Kari Watkins said.
New LED lights were installed last year, and crews began upgrading the wiring system to the 168 chairs on Aug. 24.
The old system was installed 10 years ago and needed to be updated, Watkins said. The new wires are expected to last 30 years.
"When these (chairs) were first installed, we didn’t have the technology that’s available today,” Watkins said. "This new system will extend the life of the lights, and the field will continue to look good.”
Each chair in the field represents a victim who died as a result of the April 19, 1995, bombing of the
Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building.
Watkins said family members were notified about the project in advance.
The field is closed to the public during maintenance, but arrangements are made for relatives who want to access the field.
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