Mystery Hum Torments Connecticut Town

Sleep in one Connecticut city is being rattled by a noise no one can see and few can escape. A persistent, low hum, likened to a powerful exhaust fan or vacuum, has triggered more than 200 complaints from residents in West Haven, many of whom say it vibrates through brick walls, drowns out televisions, and jolts them awake at night, the New York Times reports. The mystery rumble has been most acute in the West Shore area, near an industrial zone that includes a plant making edible sparkles, now under fresh scrutiny after years of sound-dampening upgrades. City officials have approved $16,000 for an acoustics specialist to deploy monitors and hunt for the source over several weeks.

John Carrano, the city's human resources commissioner, has been tracking the hum for months, sometimes getting readings just over 50 decibels. "My daughter doesn't hear it all. I can hear it, and for other people it's excruciating," he told NBC Connecticut last month. "It's more of a vibration than a sound." He describes it as a "quality of life issue" that is causing people to lose sleep. A petition signed by residents states: "This disturbing phenomenon occurs at all hours, disrupting our ability to sleep, concentrate, and enjoy life to its fullest. Many residents have reported increased levels of stress, anxiety, and physical discomfort due to this incessant noise and vibration."

Experts tell the Times that low-frequency noise can disrupt sleep and fuel anxiety, and is notoriously hard to locate and mitigate. "People feel imprisoned by it," says Erica D. Walker, an assistant professor of epidemiology who runs the Community Noise Lab at the Brown University School of Public Health. "It's kind of destroying the acoustical fabric of a community. It's anxiety-driven. You appeal to authorities. They don't know what to do about it. They think you're crazy."

A preliminary round of local decibel checks largely showed readings within Connecticut's legal limits—61 decibels during the day and 51 at night. The sparkle-maker's parent company says independent testing has shown the site operates within legal limits. "We have nonetheless implemented a series of precautionary measures to improve sound management at the site," Irish company Glanbia Nutritionals said in a statement.