Community Corner

More Like Brookfield Aquarium: Zoo Floods, Closes (Photos)

The Brookfield Zoo closed for the third time in its history after flood waters submerged parts of the park.

The Brookfield Zoo will be closed Friday for the second day in a row after torrential rain flooded the park and surrounding streets.

This is only the third time in the zoo’s history that it has closed, according to a release from the Chicago Zoological Society.

Water surged into the Great Bear Wilderness indoor viewing area, as well as through pedestrian underpasses leading to and from the zoo.

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“The animals are being well cared for and are doing fine,” the release said. Key staff will still be at the zoo caring for animals and monitoring facilities.

The zoo announced late Friday that it would reopen Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Admission will be free because some exhibits will remain closed. Normal hours are expected to resume on Sunday.

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The previous two times the zoo closed were also weather-related. The great February blizzard of 2011 and a rainstorm that damaged the zoo in Sept. 2008 also forced it to shut its gates.


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