Wind turbine collapses near Potštát, no injuries

A wind turbine around 30 metres high with an installed capacity of 0.15 MW collapsed into a field near Potštát in the Přerov district this morning. No one was injured. Police said strong winds may have caused the collapse. The turbine’s blades were jammed and it had been out of service since early July. Its owner estimated the damage at 200,000 crowns. Police spokesperson Libor Hejtman told CTK today. According to the Czech Wind Energy Society (ČSVE), this is the first wind turbine collapse in the Czech Republic.

According to Hejtman, one of the motorised control rods in the blades was damaged, leaving them in an open position. "The fault prevented them from being folded," he said. In this position, the blades acted like a sail against which the wind pressed. "There were very strong wind gusts in Potštát this morning, which may have led to the turbine’s collapse," Hejtman added. Industry and Trade Minister Karel Havlíček (ANO) told CTK today that he would not comment on the incident near Potštát for the time being, as he was awaiting more detailed information from energy experts.

Martin Mikeska of the Renewable Energy Chamber told CTK that the collapsed wind turbine was 31 years old. Its tower was 30 metres high and its blades were 20 metres long, making it a small wind turbine. The turbine was manufactured by Bonus. "There are three more identical wind turbines at the site, for which a thorough inspection is already being prepared," he said. No Bonus wind turbines are installed elsewhere in the Czech Republic. "Bonus stopped manufacturing them in 2005," he added.

Photographs from the accident site show that the wind turbine’s entire tower toppled over and that the turbine and blades broke apart upon hitting the ground. ČSVE chairman Michal Janeček told CTK that no wind turbine had previously collapsed in the Czech Republic. "It is [the collapse of the turbine near Potštát] an anomaly," he noted. According to Mikeska, technicians have already begun clearing the wreckage of the collapsed turbine.

The turbine stood in a field near Potštát and was part of a wind farm comprising four turbine towers. It is operated by Vapol CZ. "On behalf of the town, we will demand that the operator immediately verify the safety of the remaining wind turbines. Following such a serious incident, I consider a thorough professional inspection to be absolutely essential," Potštát mayor René Passinger said. CTK was seeking comment from Vapol CZ and the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

The mayor urged residents not to approach the accident site or any individual parts of the turbine, and not to handle anything. "This is technical equipment for which further risks cannot be ruled out without a professional assessment," he warned.

ČSVE data show that the first of the four wind turbines near Potštát was installed in 2005 and the last in 2011. However, the turbines’ actual age may be higher, as some of them may have generated electricity abroad before being installed in the Czech Republic, according to CTK information.

Wind turbine accidents are very rare in the Czech Republic. In August last year, a rotor blade broke off a wind turbine in the municipality of Karle in the Svitavy district. Part of it fell to the ground and the turbine was taken out of service.