Massive Wind Turbine Blade Crashes Into Plymouth Cranberry Bog

PLYMOUTH (WBSM) — An investigation is underway to determine why a nearly 100-foot blade from a 300-foot-tall wind turbine fell off and landed in a Plymouth cranberry bog this afternoon.

According to Plymouth Fire Chief Neil Foley, the department received a call around 1:52 p.m. from a concerned neighbor reporting one of the blades on a turbine located in the area of 810 Head of the Bay Road was suddenly missing.

Firefighters Find the Massive Blade in a Cranberry Bog

Firefighters arrived to find the detached blade “several hundred feet away from the base of the turbine, resting in an open cranberry bog area,” according to Foley, who said the blade is “approximately 75 to 100 feet long.”

The wind turbines were first erected on the site in 2016.

No Injuries Reported, Turbine Shut Down Automatically

There were no injuries reported, and Foley said there is no danger to the public, pointing out that it happened in a remote area surrounded by cranberry bogs with no nearby homes or occupied buildings.

“We were fortunate that this turbine is located out in the middle of the cranberry bogs and not in a residential area,” Foley said. “Thankfully, no one was hurt, and the turbine automatically shut itself down as designed.”

He said that firefighters assessed the scene and saw no additional hazards.

Maintenance Company and State Officials Investigate

“The maintenance company responsible for the wind turbine responded to the scene and is currently conducting inspections to determine the cause of the failure,” Foley said in his release. “According to the maintenance company, the turbine automatically entered a fail-safe mode, shutting down immediately after the blade detached.”

Get our free mobile app

The area has now been cordoned off so that contractors can come and remove the damaged blade and clean up the scene. Foley said the Plymouth Fire Department notified the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection about the incident, as well as the Town of Plymouth's Inspectional Services Department.

Next Steps in Plymouth’s Wind Turbine Investigation

“As we continue to investigate, MassDEP and Inspectional Services will now do their due diligence to ensure this incident is addressed appropriately and the impacted area is cleaned up safely,” he said.