Fire burns out Vestas turbine nacelle at Muiderhoek wind farm in the Netherlands
EIR-0924Provisional entry. Published from first reports. This entry is rechecked automatically and updated when more sources appear. Next update: 18 September 2026.
In early July 2000, a fire broke out in one of ten Vestas V-66 turbines at the Muiderhoek wind farm near Almere in the Netherlands, owned by NUON. The blaze burnt out the nacelle, the rotor and the uppermost section of the turbine's three part, 67 metre tower. Firefighters who attended the scene were unable to tackle the fire directly because their ladders were too short. Following the incident, Vestas replaced the low wind speed start up system across all ten turbines at the site. The wind farm was reported to be fully operational again.
The fire is thought to have been caused by a short circuit in the turbine's low wind speed cut in system. Firefighting was hampered because ground based ladders could not reach the height of the fire.
- Electrical components involved in turbine start up and cut in systems should be designed and tested to minimise the risk of short circuits that can lead to fire.
- Emergency response planning for wind farms should account for turbine height, since ground based firefighting equipment may not reach nacelle level.
- Where a fault is identified in one turbine of a fleet using common equipment, operators should consider retrofits across all similar units to prevent recurrence.
Published 2026-09-16. Written from public reporting. Descriptive, not investigative. See the data accuracy disclaimer.