Fire rips through Siemens Gamesa wind turbine
Fire took place at Bulgana Green Power Hub in Victoria which also features a Tesla battery energy storage system
A fire has ripped through a Siemens Gamesa wind turbine at a green energy hub in Australia, destroying the nacelle and a blade.
The Country Fire Authority (CFA) in the southern state of Victoria announced yesterday that the turbine had kept crews “busy last night” as it burned at a wind farm near the town of Great Western.
“CFA crews that attended did what they could to create safety zones and remained clear of the structure,” said local district commander Ben Townsend.
“Crews were initially called out because the main body of the wind turbine was on fire. They contacted the operator of the turbines and shut them down.
“Crews left the scene in the hands of the owners to monitor and just after 3am they got called back because a blade had caught fire, dislodged and fell to the ground.”
The fire took place at the 194MW Bulgana Green Power Hub, said local authority Energy Safe Victoria, which added that it had destroyed the nacelle of the turbine and its investigators and engineers are at the scene.
“At this stage the cause of the fire is still unknown,” it said.
The Bulgana Green Power Hub is made up of 56 Siemens Gamesa SG 3.4-132 turbines, with a power rating of 3.47MW. It also features a 20MW Tesla battery to store excess wind energy.
"The wind farm operations are and will remain offline until further notice. Our site team with support and supervision from the relevant safety authorities, is continuing to monitor the situation closely and in line with our emergency protocols. We take safety very seriously and are currently undertaking a detailed investigation on this matter."