--- title: "You Are Entirely Unprepared for the Noise This Data Center Constantly Blasts at Neighbors’ Homes" description: "New audio of an infamously loud data center in Dowagiac, Michigan captures the full scope of the deafening noise plaguing residents." date: "2026-07-28" modified: "2026-07-28" authors: - name: "Joe Wilkins" job_title: "Correspondent" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/jwilkins" url: "https://futurism.com/artificial-intelligence/data-center-noise-pollution-dowagiac-michigan-blasts-homes" categories: - "Artificial Intelligence" - "Ethics" --- # You Are Entirely Unprepared for the Noise This Data Center Constantly Blasts at Neighbors’ Homes ![A colorful photo illustration of a woman with her fingers plugging her ears as she winces at a loud sound.]() *Illustration by Tag Hartman-Simkins / Futurism. Source: Shutterstock* Earlier this month, we brought you the [story of a data center]() in the sleepy Michigan town of Dowagiac. Beset by the 30 megawatt tech facility, residents in the otherwise quiet burg were forced to live under the relentless screech of a massive cooling operation, prompting a lawsuit over excessive noise. At the time, footage [from a TikTok video]() — showing volume readings reaching 60 decibels in one resident's front yard — captured a portion of the noise, a horrible whine emitted by the data center 24/7. Now, fresh audio [recorded by *ABC7*'s]() apparently more sensitive noise equipment demonstrates the full extent of the screech, which you really have to hear with your own ears to believe: https://youtu.be/9wDr2dec474?si=nUXnryVieClqJPLT&t=25 Asked to put the noise into words, one resident told *ABC7* it "sounds like someone set up a vacuum, like in your living room... and they just left it on and walked out." One Michigander named Billy Finn compared it to Hollywood-style torture scenes. "You've seen movies and stuff where they have somebody in a cell, torturing them with sound," Finn said, "and that's basically what it is." While some would no doubt leave after the first week of dealing with the horrible screeching sound, Billy Finn's wife Marjorie says it isn't that simple. They've built their whole lives around that house, which has been in the family for generations. "I love this house because it has so much feel of my past," Marjorie told *ABC7*. "All our friends are here, all our support system's here... it's just amazing how it's changed our lives." **More on data centers:** *[Eminent Domain Could Be Used to Seize Your Land for AI Data Centers]()* ## Author At Futurism, I focus on the intersection of technology and power — examining the economics, history, and politics behind today’s dystopian headlines. As a writer, I’m interested in topics ranging from AI’s impact on labor to startups nobody asked for. My prior work includes bylines in Jacobin, Verso, and Blue Labyrinths. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Forbes, The Guardian, MIT Technology Review, Time, The Nation, Mother Jones, The Verge, and Wired. I grew up in Michigan, attending Central Michigan University as well as Ball State University, where I earned a master of music. I now live in Brooklyn with my girlfriend and our cat Ziti. On weekends, you can find me hunched over a cold pint arguing geopolitics with the other transplants. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()