Wind turbine catches hearth off Norfolk coast as Scroby Sands investigation beneath manner

An investigation is beneath manner after a hearth on an offshore wind turbine.

A plume of thick black smoke could possibly be seen billowing from one of many towers on the Scroby Sands wind farm on Tuesday morning off the coast of Great Yarmouth in Norfolk.

The alarm was raised round 10.50am and all employees on the North Sea web site had been accounted for after an evacuation, the coastguard stated in a press release.

RWE, the operator of the wind farm which is 1.5 miles off the coast, stated the employees had been protected and there have been no accidents.

The German firm acknowledged it was the turbine nacelle – the enclosure on the high of the tower which homes the producing parts – that had been alight following an incident.

A spokesperson for the operator stated the blaze had “extinguished itself” after a short while, admitting it was “incredibly rare” for a turbine to catch hearth.

RWE suggested folks to “keep away” from the realm as the reason for the blaze was assessed.

It added: “Emergency services were contacted immediately and the coastguard made aware.

“They are monitoring the realm and advising on a possible 500-metre restriction zone being enforced across the affected turbine.”

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No coastguard search and rescue models had been despatched to the incident.

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RWE stated the 30 generators at Scroby Sands have an put in capability of 60 megawatts and may energy over 48,000 households.