AN INVESTIGATION is under way into the cause of a fire that destroyed a wind turbine near the Three Towns at the weekend.
One of the 15 giant turbines at the Ardrossan Wind Farm site was seen engulfed in flames late Friday afternoon, July 22, sending thick plumes of black smoke billowing across the North Ayrshire sky.
The site has been operational since 2004 and is currently run by Ventient Energy, with each turbine reaching a height of 60m and providing a capacity of 2MW.
A Scottish Fire and Rescue Service spokesperson said: "We were alerted at 4.55pm on Friday, July 22 to reports of smoke coming from a wind turbine near Dalry Road, Ardrossan.
"Operations control mobilised two appliances to the scene, where crews liaised with onsite personnel to make the area safe.
"No firefighting was required.
"Crews were in attendance until 6.51pm."
According to the renewable energy sector news site renews.biz, Ventient confirmed “an incident provoking fire damage” to a single turbine occurred on the afternoon of Friday, adding that the blaze was extinguished in the early hours of Saturday morning and the site has now been secured.
A spokesperson told the website: “An investigation into the cause of the incident has begun and further inspections on site are ongoing.”
They confirmed there were no injuries or land damage caused and the damaged turbine has now been isolated and disconnected from the system.
“Access to the wind farm is now off-limits and monitored with a 24/7 security team deployed to protect the area and the public," a statement added.
Ventient has been approached for further comment.
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