Instead of an ice rink or basketball court, the floor of the United Center is currently packed from end to end with nearly 2,600 boxes of food.
As of Thursday, a whopping 77,840 pounds of rice, beans, pasta, tuna, tomato sauce, peanut butter, canned vegetables and other non-perishable items filled every inch of the normal playing surface.
The result is a stunning photo exemplifying the 21,000-seat arena’s abrupt transformation from sporting venue — in a coronavirus-free alternate reality, it would have been prepped for the scheduled Bulls-Nets game on Saturday — to pandemic logistics hub.
The food has been relocated to free up space in the Greater Chicago Food Depository’s main warehouse, according to GCFD senior manager Greg Trotter.