Damaged Wind Turbine Blade Sinks Off Massachusetts Coast

This article is part of The State of Science, a series featuring science stories from public radio stations across the United States. This story, by Eve Zuckoff, Patrick Flanary, and Gilda Geist, was originally published by WCAI.

This is a developing situation — CAI will continue coverage. Scroll down for additional background, and check their page for updates.

Catch up quick:

• On Saturday, July 13, a Vineyard Wind turbine blade suffered significant damage 15 miles southwest of Nantucket
• Since then, thousands of pieces of fiberglass shards and green and white foam have washed up on south coast Nantucket beaches
• The debris has forced swimming closures and affected local businesses, as concerns persist about environmental and economic impacts
• The event caused federal officials from the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement to issue a suspension order for Vineyard Wind, until the cause of the damage could be determined
• Nantucket town officials told the Nantucket Current that they first learned about the damage at 5:00 p.m. on Monday. The fact that the blade was damaged but news did not come out immediately has created anger among Nantucket residents, particularly boaters
• During a Nantucket Select Board meeting on Wednesday night, town officials and locals expressed outrage to representatives for Vineyard Wind and General Electric, the builder and installer of the blade, over the impacts on the environment and local businesses
• Early Thursday morning, Vineyard Wind informed the town of Nantucket that a large portion of the blade broke free and was in the water. On Friday officials said it sunk to the ocean floor, as debris continues to wash up on the Island’s south shore beaches and harder to reach islands.

UPDATE FRIDAY 11:45 a.m.: A large piece of fiberglass debris from the damaged Vineyard Wind turbine blade has sunk to the ocean floor, as the debris cleanup continues, according to press release from the town of Nantucket that’s timestamped for 9:10 a.m.

Town officials said that about half of the fiberglass shell of the blade remains attached and crews will continue to monitor it until a removal plan is developed. Most of the green and white foam fill dislodged during the initial failure last Saturday.

They added that Vineyard wind is also developing a plan to test water quality around the island.

“This complex undertaking involves engaging experts to determine the best path forward. To conduct the testing, specific information from GE’s Safety Data Sheets is required, which is expected to be delivered to Vineyard Wind today,” according to the press release.

Meanwhile, the town reports that Vineyard Wind and its contractors had 56 people cleaning up beaches as of yesterday, and today crews will continue the work across south shore beaches today, along with Jetties Beach and other north side areas in advance of Saturday’s Triathlon, and the harder-to-reach areas like Tuckernuck, and from the water via offshore vessels.

“Vineyard Wind is utilizing two models to predict the path of debris travel: one from the U.S. Coast Guard and the other from National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). We expect the modeling to be updated daily for as long as necessary. With today’s winds from the north, we are advised by Vineyard Wind that most of the debris appears to be staying south of the island,” town officials wrote.

Nantucket’s leadership has made clear: it’s not the island’s job to clean up after this crisis.

“A few staff members are acting in advisory roles in specialty areas such as shorebird management,” according to the press release, but Vineyard Wind has assured town officials that they “will remain on-island as long as necessary.”

Reports of debris can be phoned into 833-609-5768 or sent to the cleanup contractor here.

UPDATE THURSDAY 4:18 p.m.: Shortly after 3:00 p.m. a spokesperson for GE Verona, the company that manufactured the damaged blade, released a statement to CAI. “GE Vernova’s top priority is safety and minimizing the impact of this event on the communities surrounding the Vineyard Wind farm in Massachusetts. We continue to work around the clock to enhance mitigation efforts in collaboration with Vineyard Wind and all relevant state, local and federal authorities. We are working with urgency to complete our root cause analysis of this event.”

UPDATE THURSDAY 1:20 p.m.: Nantucket town officials have learned that the “the remaining portion of the blade had come down at approximately 6:40 AM,” according to an official statement.

Officials say they were told that a “very large piece of debris” broke free and is “below the surface.”

The information marks a discrepancy between what Vineyard Wind and Nantucket town officials are sharing, and when they’re sharing it; Vineyard Wind has yet to make mention of any large piece in the water column, telling CAI that as of 8:00 a.m. the damaged blade was still hanging on. Apparently more than 3 hours later, at 11:22 a.m., the company said a “significant part” of the blade has “detached” from the turbine.”

Town officials say Vineyard Wind is hoping to retrieve fiberglass and foam pieces while they remain offshore, and the company is responsible for collecting all debris for analysis and removal from the island.

“Vineyard Wind is fully responsible for the repercussions on Nantucket, and Town Administration and the Select Board will ensure they are held accountable,” the statement says.

The offshore wind developer has reportedly told the town that the majority of the interior foam from the entire blade was released on Saturday, but additional debris could wash ashore tonight or tomorrow.

UPDATE THURSDAY 11:22 a.m.: In a statement emailed at 11:20 a.m., Vineyard Wind reports, “This morning, a significant part of the remaining GE Vernova blade detached from the turbine.” More debris could wash ashore on Nantucket tonight and tomorrow.

The company added that, despite weather conditions creating a “difficult work environment,” maritime crews were onsite overnight preparing to respond to this development. Those crews, stationed on a fleet of vessels, are continuing to remove debris, according to the statement, and additional crews are being deployed to Nantucket island to manage additional debris that washes ashore.

UPDATE THURSDAY 9:05 a.m.: Ian Campbell of Vineyard Wind tells CAI that as of 8:00 a.m. the damaged blade was still hanging on.

As of late Wednesday night part of a blade from an offshore Vineyard Wind turbine was dangling and threatening to snap.

This follows a “blade failure” on Saturday whichcaused debris to wash ashore on several Nantucket beaches.

But Vineyard Wind says there’s still more debris coming in from the project 14 miles from the island and a blade the length of a football field is hanging precipitously.

CEO Klaus Moeller briefed Nantucket leaders last night and residents who attended were not happy.

“We know that none of this debris is toxic,” Moeller said.

The audience responded with audible skepticism.

STORY: Wind farm debris on Nantucket beaches causes high-summer pain

In a dramatic moment, Moeller later interrupted his own remarks to deliver developing news.

“We were informed just now that there’s been a development to the integrity of the blade,” he said. “I’m happy to stay a little bit longer but then have to go work with my team. I don’t know [what’s happened] because I’ve been here.”

Jennifer Cullen, a senior manager at Vineyard Wind, later gave a live update on the wind turbine blade that was damaged Saturday night.

Reading a statement from her phone, she told the room: “While the blade remains attached, it could detach soon. We’ve mobilized our response team and have also witnessed new debris enter the water.”

The federal government shut down the offshore wind farm earlier this week to investigate.

The turbine-maker — GE — is also looking into what caused the blade to fail.