By Michael Rosenfield, Kaitlin McKinley Becker and Carla Rojo • Published May 29, 2023 • Updated on May 30, 2023 • nbcboston.com
Witnesses watched as a wind turbine on Deer Island suddenly started spinning out of control and then a piece of a blade came flying off the 110 foot tower.
Emergency crews responded to Boston’s Deer Island on Monday after someone called to say there appeared to be something hanging from a blade on one of the two wind turbines in the area, according to the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA).
The MWRA said the person was walking around the public access area of the water treatment facility when they made the discovery and called 911 around 10 a.m.
Witnesses told NBC10 Boston Monday night that they watched as the wind turbine suddenly started spinning out of control and then a piece of a blade came flying off the 100-foot tower.
“I was scared out of my mind,” said Melinda Ginches. “Because we were right in the line of where the debris was falling. It was coming towards us.”
Moments earlier, Ginches and her husband, who were out for a morning walk, had started hearing odd noises.
“We heard like a whirring sound and I looked up,” said Ginches. “You could see the windmill starting to spin really super fast, and the blades of the windmill starting to like undulate.”
The turbine helps power the water treatment plant run by the MWRA.
Public trails in the area of the wind turbines off Deer Island will remain closed.
URL to article: https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2023/05/30/part-of-bostons-deer-island-closed-after-piece-of-wind-turbine-blade-flies-off/