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Hybrid co-locatedUnited StatesEIR-2615

Battery fire at New York solar farm prompts shelter-in-place order

July 2023Published 29 Oct 2026Responsible editor: Chief Editor

SignificantThermal / fire
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out of service for about •• daysShown in the record →Full estimate

What happened

A large battery fire broke out at a solar farm on County Route 179 in the Town of Lyme, Jefferson County, New York, shortly after 1 p.m. on Thursday 27 July 2023. The fire caused significant damage and produced large amounts of smoke. State officials warned that the smoke could pose health risks, and residents within a one-mile radius were told to shelter in place. The shelter-in-place order was lifted at 9.20 p.m. the same day, although drivers were urged to remain cautious in the area.

The Jefferson County HAZMAT team and multiple fire departments attended the scene. The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation and the Office of Fire Prevention and Control were deployed to support the response. The county fire and emergency management director said firefighting would continue through the night and into the following day.

Contributing factors

Not reported. The source does not give the cause of the fire, the battery chemistry or the state of the battery management system.

Lessons learned

  1. Operators of battery storage at solar sites should maintain an emergency plan that covers large fires, smoke plume exposure and public shelter-in-place guidance.
  2. Early contact with hazardous materials teams and environmental regulators helps air monitoring begin quickly.
  3. Response plans should assume firefighting may continue for many hours, with clear public messages on when restrictions are lifted.

More lessons on emergency response and public communication, detection and monitoring, fire suppression and firefighting, from every incident on the register.

Source

cnycentral.com

Published 2026-10-29. Written from public reporting. Descriptive, not investigative. See the data accuracy disclaimer.

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