May 22, 2018
Pennsylvania

Windmill catches fire at Locust Ridge Wind Farm in Schuylkill County

By Frank Warner | The Morning Call | May 21, 2018 | www.mcall.com

Schuylkill County fire companies were dispatched Monday night to a 390-foot-tall windmill that caught fire at the Locust Ridge Wind Farm near Mahanoy City, according to emergency radio reports.

The fire was reported at the center of the windmill’s three 133-foot blades about 9:15 p.m. in the sprawling wind farm in Union Township. The wind farm has at least 50 more windmills.

Fire officials radioed that the flames and sparks at the blades did not appear to be spreading on the ground, and the fire was burning itself out.

No one was injured, according to the county emergency center.

Ringtown and Shenandoah Heights fire companies were on the scene, and most firefighters left about 10:15 p.m.

No estimate was available on the extent of the fire damage. Avangrid Renewables, the company that owns the wind farm, could not be reached for comment.

The wind farm, which is connected to PPL’s power grid, is about 15 miles west of Tamaqua. Its windmills were installed from 2006 to 2008.

URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2018/05/22/windmill-catches-fire-at-locust-ridge-wind-farm-in-schuylkill-county/