Solar panels catch fire at Woodrow Wilson Elementary School in Sayreville

June 2024Published 28 Sept 2026Responsible editor: Chief Editor

MinorThermal / fireProvisional

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From the recordRoot cause

Where: Woodrow Wilson Elementary School in Sayreville, United States
What: A rack of 25 solar panels caught fire
Response: Crews from all fire companies responded and extinguished the fire quickly
Cause: Not known
Outcome: Solar generation shut down until the installer could determine the cause

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What happened

A rack of 25 solar panels caught fire at Woodrow Wilson Elementary School in Sayreville on a Sunday afternoon. A neighbour reported the fire around 3 p.m. Fire crews extinguished it quickly, and it remained limited to the solar panels. An initial investigation found that no water had penetrated the building and that there appeared to be no structural damage to the roof. The cause was not known. Power to the panels was turned off, and generation at the school was shut down until the installer could determine the cause and confirm the panels were safe.

Lessons learned

After a rooftop solar fire, keep power to the array off until the system has been inspected.
A call from a nearby resident can bring fire crews to a school solar fire quickly.
Do not restart generation until the installer has inspected the array and confirmed it is safe.

More lessons on maintenance, inspection and ageing assets, fire suppression and firefighting, from every incident on the register.

Not yet known

Cause of the fire
Solar panel model and age
Cost of the damage
Length of generation shutdown

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

Source

mycentraljersey.com

Other entries that name Elementary

Grass fire damages solar panels behind Williams Elementary in Farmington EIR-1259 · 2024
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Other entries that name Sayreville

Explosion and fire at Sayreville substation injures contractor during repairs EIR-1600 · 2024

Published 2026-09-28. Written from public reporting. Descriptive, not investigative. See the data accuracy disclaimer.

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