Solar panel fire on a Madison home roof extinguished
2024Published 28 Sept 2026
- Where
- Madison home roof
- What
- Solar panel fire on roof of house
- Response
- Madison Fire Department isolated power and extinguished flames
- Cause
- Radiant heat from the solar panel, possible squirrel contribution
What happened
On a Monday afternoon in April 2024, the Madison Fire Department responded to a fire reported at about 2:45 p.m. on a solar panel on the roof of a house. Crews confirmed a solar panel was alight on the wood-framed structure, shut off power to the panels and extinguished the flames. The fire did not spread into the home. The department said the cause was radiant heat from the solar panel, and that a squirrel which ran from under the panels during extinguishment could have contributed.
Contributing factors
The fire department attributed the fire to radiant heat from the solar panel. A squirrel under the panels was noted only as a possible contributing factor.
Lessons learned
- Roof-mounted solar panels can ignite from radiant heat, so operators should record module condition and any animal activity during inspections.
- Isolating power to roof-mounted solar before firefighting reduces shock risk to crews on wood-framed homes.
- Early isolation and attack on a rooftop solar fire can stop spread into the building.
Not yet known
- Solar panel model and age
- Cost of damage or repair
- Any downtime to the home power supply
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Source
Other entries that name Madison
Published 2026-09-28. Written from public reporting. Descriptive, not investigative. See the data accuracy disclaimer.