A lightning strike was the possible cause of a fire on a turbine at Ireland’s only offshore wind farm yesterday, according to local media reports and eyewitnesses.
Witnesses reported fire and smoke billowing from one of the seven 3.6MW GE turbines at the 25MW Arklow Bank project, off County Wicklow, around midday.
GE said nobody was injured during the incident.
Local media reports and a resident in the area suggested the area had been hit by thunderstorms and lightning around the time the turbine caught fire.
My dad just took this photo from our house in Co. Wicklow - apparently lightning struck a wind turbine off the coast and now it's on fire. ��
— Amy Kinsella (@Amy_M_Kinsella)
A GE Renewable Energy spokesperson said: “An offshore wind turbine event has been reported on October 19th, 2022, at the Arklow Bank Offshore Windfarm located in the Irish Sea. There were no injuries. The Coast Guard has been notified.
GE added: “Once weather conditions permit and we can access the site safely, we will start working to determine the root cause of this event."
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