Officials are looking for what caused a fire that damaged a wind turbine near Garner in northern Iowa.The fire at the Hancock County Wind Farm broke out Wednesday morning in a compartment holding the gear box and electrical components more than 200 feet above the ground. The fire then worked its way toward the blades.

Two of the three blades broke off, falling to the ground. No one was hurt.
Florida Power and Light Energy, of Juno Beach, Florida, owns the wind farm. Spokesman Steve Stengel says the fire was isolated to the one turbine and the wind farm remained operational.

There are 148 turbines on the wind farm, which went into operation in 2002.GARNER (AP) – By Becky Ogann
Story Created: Oct 4, 2007 at 10:41 AM CDT
Web Link: http://www.kcrg.com/news/local/10232711.html

Fire caused major damage to a wind turbine Wednesday morning at the Hancock County Wind Farm southwest of Garner.

The large compartment holding the gear box and electric components more than 200 feet above the ground burned and two of the three 77-foot blades broke off, falling to the ground.

No one was injured and damage was limited to the turbine, according to a spokesman for Florida Power and Light Energy, of Juno Beach, Fla., owners of the wind farm.

The fire was reported shortly after 8 a.m., according to Hancock County Sheriff Scott Dodd.

The turbine’s third blade remained connected and was hanging straight down.

The sheriff’s office and Garner Fire Department were at the scene.

The fire started near the rear of the equipment housing compartment and worked its way toward the blades, according to Garner Fire Chief Terry Jass.

“We pretty much were on standby and when things fell to the ground we put them out,” he said. “The blades were burning when they fell.”

Ken Engstler of Engstler Construction of Garner was working on a farm near the turbine when one of his crew members saw smoke coming from the turbine.

“Smoke was rolling out of it,” said Engstler. “So we got in the truck and started heading up that way.”

He said the fire burned for half an hour to 45-minutes before the blades fell off.

“When the blades fell, there was all kinds of debris flying all over the place,” he said.

Steve Stengel, a spokesman for Florida Power and Light, said the cause of the fire is not known.

“The damage was isolated to one turbine and the balance of the wind farm remained operational,” he said.

“The turbines are all connected on different circuits,” he said. “So it is possible that four or five other turbines were taken out of service because of the fire.”

Stengel said no Florida Power and Light customers would have had service interrupted by the fire.

Stengel said there are 148 turbines in the 80-square-mile Hancock County Wind Farm.

The wind farm went into operation in 2002.

By Bob Link

globegazette.com

4 October 2007

ARIAN SCHUESSLER/The Globe Gazette A turbine on a FPL wind generator caught fire on Wednesday morning near Garner.

Wind turbine collapses, sparks fire – No injuries; cause under investigation

ALTONA — Area residents were startled Friday morning when they heard what sounded like explosions at Noble Environmental Power wind park here.

“It (the noise) was so consistent and lasted so long I thought it was a thunderstorm way off in the distance,” said Bernie Bullis, who lives about four miles away.

He had stopped at his home to pick up paperwork for work when the rumbling started.

“Then, I thought it might be an earthquake.”

Either way, he said, it was surprising and unusual.

The repetitive booming noise, which lasted a few minutes, wasn’t caused by the weather — it was a massive turbine collapsing to the ground off Fisher Way.

Noble officials said the 9:45 a.m. collapse then sparked a small fire at the base of the turbine.

No one was injured.

Neighbors could see thick smoke billowing at the rural wind park as Altona and Ellenburg Depot crews arrived to extinguish the blaze.

“I looked out and saw all the black smoke so I knew something was going on, but I never heard it (fall),” said Joanne Perry, who lives on Rand Hill Road.

The entire Altona wind park was shut down after the accident, but officials said no danger was posed to the public.

After two years of construction, dozens of turbines are scattered across the Northern Tier. There are about 270 turbines between the various projects in Clinton and Franklin counties.

It can take weeks to construct and energize a single turbine, which at full height stands about 392 feet tall.

The Altona project alone has cost more than $200 million.

Friday’s collapse was the first major problem reported at any of the area wind parks, which are insured.

It was unclear Friday what caused the collapse.

Noble officials are continuing to investigate and refused to release any additional information or say whether the collapse caused any other damage.

In a news release, Noble Environmental CEO Walt Howard said: “Noble values the safety of its employees and neighbors above all else. Noble has committed its full resources to understanding the cause of this incident.”

Local firefighters referred all comments to Noble.

Altona Town Supervisor Larry Ross did not return Press-Republican messages seeking comment on the collapse.

Published March 06, 2009 10:24 pm
By ANDREA VanVALKENBURG

Staff Writer

E-mail Andrea VanValkenburg at: avanvalkenburg@pressrepublican.com

Web Link: http://www.pressrepublican.com/archivesearch/local_story_065222420.html

Residents shocked by wind-turbine collapse

ALTONA — Many residents were shocked that a massive wind turbine could come tumbling down and officials say it could take months to learn why one collapsed Friday.

Mike Fellion flew over the wreckage Saturday morning and was amazed to see that pieces of the structure appeared to have been thrown “about a quarter-mile away.”

“I was surprised,” said Fellion, who flew above the wreckage with his father, Victor, a volunteer pilot who runs the Wings of Life program, which provides emergency medical flights for ailing residents.

“I’m just hoping that this was an isolated incident.”

Neighbors around the Altona wind park reported hearing loud explosions before the turbine apparently snapped in half around 10 a.m. and then caught fire.

Helen Morales, who lives near the fallen Fisher Way turbine, didn’t hear anything, but earlier saw the blades on one turbine “spinning at a high rate of speed” and noted that the air appeared “cloudy” around it.

She doesn’t know if the faster-moving blades were attached to the affected turbine, but wonders if her observations were connected to Friday’s collapse, which was the first major incident at the Norther Tier wind parks.

Though the push for wind energy has received strong support from many local residents, others, like members of the West Beekmantown Neighborhood Association, feel they pose a danger to public safety and health and have resisted the efforts.

There are zoning regulations in place that restrict how close turbines can be erected near homes, but some wondered Saturday if similar collapses could happen and whether flying debris could extend beyond the protected perimeter.

As word of the collapse spread Friday, Adirondack Council spokesman John Sheehan expressed concern about the risks turbines could pose on elevated and sloped locations if a collapse could happen in flatland parks.

The Altona wind park will remain closed as the investigation continues.

In their latest update, Noble Environmental Power officials said it could take several months to finalize their investigation, which is being conducted jointly with General Electric.

Noble CEO Walt Howard toured the site after the collapse and spoke with employees there.

In a news release, he said: “I am pleased with the quick response of the Noble team. They secured the site and accounted for all Noble employees in a manner that is consistent with our stringent safety policy. I am also grateful to the fire department for its swift response.”

Officials said the wind park utilizes General Electric 1.5 megawatt turbines. There are currently more than 12,000 of those turbines across the world and they are the most widely deployed turbines, Noble said.

Altona Town Supervisor Larry Ross was also surprised by the collapse and said he will be updated on the investigation as it progresses.

“They’re going to keep me in the loop so I know what’s going on,” he said from his home Saturday.

“The main thing was that no one was hurt “¦ and now it’s a matter of finding out what happened and putting it back together.”

Published March 07, 2009 09:34 pm

By ANDREA VanVALKENBURG
Staff Writer

E-mail Andrea VanValkenburg at: avanvalkenburg@pressrepublican.com

Web Link:  http://www.pressrepublican.com/archivesearch/local_story_066213456.html

GLOWING IN THE WIND: The fibreglass blades burning.

A HUGE wind turbine went up in smoke in a massive blaze seen for miles across Wearside.

The 200ft structure at the Nissan factory, part of a £2.3million wind farm built in August, burst into flames just after 12.30pm yesterday.

The fire was so fierce all three 75-ft long fibreglass blades eventually dropped off and thick black smoke could be seen for miles around.

The Alameda County Zoning Administrator approved strict new measures Wednesday to prevent grass fires sparked by Altamont Pass windmills, just as firefighters battled a searing windmill blaze off Vasco Road.

County officials in Hayward could not have known how timely their decision was.

An afternoon grass fire sparked by a turbine charred 10 acres in southeastern Contra Costa County, melting the windmill’s machinery. At one point, the turbine itself burst into flames and had to be doused by several helicopter passes.

The fire was not extraordinary. Last year, about 40 fires swept through Altamont Pass, fraying the nerves of landowners and firefighters alike.

“Living out there, it just sends a chill down my spine,” said Darryl Mueller, homeowner in the Altamont and ardent windmill opponent…

June 9, 2004

The tempest which swept over Hamburg and Schleswig-Holstein yesterday morning caused damage to the value of serveral million (euros). The lightning strikes caused rail delays of approxinately 1 hour between Keil and Hamburg.

Nothing could save the wind turbine in the Wulfhagen wind park. Even with a fire appliance the firefighters could not reach the fire which was at a height of 65 metres (213 feet).