Lightning recently struck the antenna spire of the 102-storey, 443.2m-tall Empire State Building during a storm in New York. The skyscraper didn’t suffer any damage. After the Statue of Liberty lightning strike, I’m waiting for the Chrysler Building to go next.
Its Art Deco spire was going to be a mooring mast for zeppelins. Passengers were going to check in at the observation deck on the 86th floor. After checking in, they would have taken an special elevator to the 102nd floor to board the dirigible. At the end this proved impractical and dangerous because of the wind drafts, so the idea was abandoned. Later, in 1953, the radio mast just hit by lightning was built on top of the spire.
Built in 1931, the Empire State Building is one of the most famous architectural landmarks in the world. It remained the tallest skyscraper in the planet till the World Trade centre north tower was finished in 1972. After the September 11 attacks, it became again the tallest building in New York, only to be surpassed a few weeks ago by the new One World Trade centre. [Twitter]