Typhoon damages floating solar plant at Yamakura Dam in Ichihara
Sept 2019Published 17 Sept 2026Responsible editor: Chief Editor
- Where
- Yamakura Dam in Ichihara City
- Manufacturer
- Kyocera
- What
- Typhoon Faxai tore modules loose and caused fire
- Response
- Fire extinguished at 5.20pm local time
- Cause
- Under investigation
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Companies named in the reporting of this entry (being named is not a finding of fault): Kyocera
What happened
On 9 September 2019, Typhoon Faxai struck the coastal city of Chiba and damaged Japan's largest floating PV plant, inaugurated by Kyocera in March 2018 at the Yamakura Dam in Ichihara City. Reporting said the wind tore several modules from the array and stacked them. Firefighters were reported to have said that contact between loose panels and modules that remained moored overheated the modules and created the conditions for a fire involving around 50 panels.
The plant covers around 44 acres of water and has 50,904 solar modules supplied by Kyocera. A Kyocera spokesperson said the fire was extinguished at around 5.20pm local time and that the extent of the damage was still under investigation. Power from the project is sold to TEPCO Energy Partner Incorporated.
Contributing factors
Strong winds from Typhoon Faxai were reported to have torn modules loose. A later secondary account of a Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry investigation identified failure of anchors on the central southern side as the main cause, with uneven loads and sequential failure of resin bolts ripping the floating array into sections. That account also cited the size and shape of the floating island and the safety factors used in construction. Those investigation findings are not in the original news report.
Lessons learned
- Typhoon winds can tear modules from floating arrays and cause contact with moored panels. Operators should verify mooring systems resist extreme uplift and movement.
- Contact between loose and moored modules can overheat panels. Insurers should check separation and retention features on large floating arrays.
More lessons on weather and external hazards, spacing, layout and fire spread, from every incident on the register.
Not yet known
- Turbine or array model and age
- Cost of the damage
- Downtime and lost generation
This entry is updated when these are reported. Get an alert for the next one like it.
Published 2026-09-17. Written from public reporting. Descriptive, not investigative. See the data accuracy disclaimer.
