CORRECTION (July 30, 2024, 9:58 a.m.): An earlier version of this story misstated the cause of the new debris washing up on Nantucket. A second wind turbine blade has not broken.
More debris has washed up on beaches in Nantucket, Massachusetts, after a wind turbine blade broke.
Nantucket town leaders and residents are frustrated amid the latest effort to keep beaches free from turbine blade debris. The public is being urged not to touch any debris.
The town released this information on Monday:
Get New England news, weather forecasts and entertainment stories to your inbox. Sign up for NECN newsletters.
This afternoon, GE Vernova informed Town Administration that several sections of the turbine blade detached from the hub. Some large pieces entered the water column, while smaller pieces floated on the surface. Additional debris landed on the turbine platform.
According to GE Vernova, this detachment was not unexpected, though it has been several days since any debris detachment was last observed. The U.S. Coast Guard continues to enforce a 500-meter safety exclusion zone around the turbine. In an ongoing effort to identify and collect debris from the damaged blade, GE Vernova and Vineyard Wind have dispatched maritime crews to secure as much debris as possible for immediate containment and removal.
GE Vernova and Resolve Marine are working on a plan to safely and controlled remove the remaining portions of the blade. This plan is currently in development.
The town said Tuesday that popcorn-sized pieces of foam debris were expected to continue washing up on Nantucket's southern beaches Wednesday and Thursday.
Anyone who finds wind turbine debris should call the Vineyard Wind's reporting hotline at 833-609-5768.
