CAPE JERVIS – Do you call the CFS in the event of a wind turbine fire?
While it might seem like the right thing to do, according to group officer for the Southern Fleurieu CFS Mr Greg Crawford, there is little to nothing the CFS can do in this situation, as officers found out at the weekend.
Last Saturday at 2.33 pm, the Southern Fleurieu CFS group was alerted to a fire at the Starfish Hill Wind Farm, near Cape Jervis, in which a turbine had caught alight.
The fire caused $3,000,000 in damage.
On arrival, CFS officers could do little but watch the blaze from half a kilometre away, as the situation was deemed too dangerous to approach.
“There was not a damn thing you could do about it,” said Mr Crawford of the turbine fire.
When Work Safe arrived to the scene, CFS officers were told to retreat a further 500 metres away from the fire, as the blades continued to spin.
“There were tips of the blades flying some distance,” said Mr Crawford.
“You could go no closer than a kilometre away.”
CFS officers kept watch for spot fires, but were unable to extinguish those close to the turbine.
Do wind turbines catch fire, start Aussie bushfires, and maybe even kill people?
Or, on the other hand:-
Why do we ALWAYS hear about Chernobyl every time someone talks about nukes, but we don’t hear about the risks with other energy industries?
Eclipse Now 