Wind turbine collapses at Geumsungsan Wind Farm in Hwasun County, South Korea
EIR-0508Provisional entry. Confirmed: a 4.7 MW turbine tower broke and collapsed at the Geumsungsan Wind Power Plant, Hwasun County, South Korea, with no casualties reported. Not yet known: the root cause of the tower failure, which was still under investigation with the manufacturer and suppliers at time of reporting, and this is based on a single news source. No further update is scheduled; the entry stays provisional until new information is published.
A 4.7 MW wind turbine at the Geumsungsan Wind Power Plant in Hwasun County, Jeonnam, South Korea, broke at the middle of its tower and collapsed at around 2:50am on 21 April 2025. The turbine was one of 11 units at the site and had been in commercial operation since June 2023. No casualties occurred because the collapse happened in a restricted access area. Following the collapse, turbines numbered 8 to 11 at the site were placed under safety inspection while units 1 to 7 continued normal operation. The local authority, Hwasun County, stated it planned to investigate the exact cause of the failure together with the turbine manufacturer and suppliers.
Not reported. The cause of the tower breaking at the mid-section had not been determined at the time of reporting, and investigation with the manufacturer and suppliers was ongoing.
- Restricting public access around wind turbine installations can prevent casualties in the event of a sudden structural failure.
- Following any single turbine failure at a multi-unit site, other turbines of the same design or vintage should be proactively taken offline for inspection.
- Root cause investigations into tower structural failures should involve both the manufacturer and component suppliers to identify systemic versus isolated defects.
Published 2026-09-07. Written from public reporting. Descriptive, not investigative. See the data accuracy disclaimer.