Wind turbine collapses at wind farm near Windthorst, Texas
June 2017Published 15 Sept 2026Responsible editor: Chief Editor
- Where
- wind farm near Windthorst, Texas
- Operator
- Alterra Power
- What
- wind turbine collapsed
- Injuries
- None reported
- Cause
- Under investigation
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Companies named in the reporting of this entry (being named is not a finding of fault): Alterra Power
What happened
A wind turbine collapsed at a wind farm just outside Windthorst, Texas, coming down near Oliver Wells Road. No people and no livestock were harmed. Alterra Power, whose staff were investigating the failure, said this type of failure was extremely rare and said each turbine had been checked. Reporting noted the structure measured over 400 feet from the base to the blade tip. The wind farm was shut down during the investigation and was back in operation at the time of reporting, with the cause of the collapse still not determined.
Contributing factors
Not reported; the cause of the structural failure was still under investigation at the time of the report.
Lessons learned
- A wind turbine collapse near a public road requires operators to set wide debris exclusion zones before any return to service.
- After an unexplained turbine collapse each sister turbine must be checked before the wind farm restarts.
- A full site shutdown after a structural failure allows safe checks and restores output only when risks are known.
More lessons on structural integrity and turbines, from every incident on the register.
Not yet known
- Turbine model and age
- Cost of the damage
- Length of the shutdown
This entry is updated when these are reported. Get an alert for the next one like it.
Source
Other entries that name Windthorst
Published 2026-09-15. Written from public reporting. Descriptive, not investigative. See the data accuracy disclaimer.
