Fatal wind turbine blade failure at Araya Seaside Park, Akita, Japan

What happened

An 81-year-old man died after a 40-metre wind turbine blade broke off and fell to the ground at Araya Seaside Park in Akita prefecture, Japan. Police received an emergency call on the Friday morning reporting that a blade had broken off a turbine at the park. A local meteorological observatory had issued a strong wind warning for the city that morning. The man was found lying unconscious with head injuries about a metre from the fallen blade and was later pronounced dead in hospital.

Local police opened an investigation into the cause. The turbine involved was an Enercon E-82, which Enercon said was operated and serviced by a local partner. Enercon confirmed it was bringing forward regularly scheduled blade inspections at other wind farms in Japan using the same turbine type while the cause is investigated.

Contributing factors

A strong wind warning had been issued for the city on the morning of the incident. The mechanical cause of the blade detachment had not been determined at the time of reporting and is under investigation by local police, with the manufacturer supporting the inquiry.

Lessons learned

1. Operators of Enercon E-82 turbines should bring forward blade inspections across the fleet after one blade detaches.
2. Public exclusion zones around turbines must be enlarged or access closed during strong wind warnings.
3. Local operating partners must enable rapid manufacturer support to police investigations of blade failures.

More lessons on structural integrity and turbines, emergency response and public communication, from every incident on the register.

Not yet known

• Mechanical cause of the blade detachment
• Age and service history of the turbine
• Cost of repairs and lost generation
• Duration of any site shutdown

This entry is updated when these are reported. Get an alert for the next one like it.

Source

reneweconomy.com.au