A road in Missaukee County was closed for several hours Sunday afternoon and three homes were evacuated as a safety precaution after construction workers became concerned about the stability of a newly-installed 400-foot wind turbine. ...[the homes] were still evacuated out of an abundance of caution in terms of possible flying debris.

Spurred by idled windmills at Laker Elementary School near Pigeon, the Michigan Public Service Commission has launched a statewide investigation into the interconnection of independent power projects with electric utilities.

PIGEON -- DTE Energy has unveiled two solutions for turning windmills back on at Laker Elementary School, but neither option will work, school officials say.

DTE Energy unveiled two ‘’solutions'’ Friday for turning windmills back on at Laker Elementary School, but neither option will work, school officials say. Laker leaders say DTE officials don’t seem to understand how windmills work and the coal-burning utility continues to drag its feet on the project. A DTE engineer is supposed to be back at the school on Monday to study the turbines.

“It is extremely complex to connect large wind generators to the electric grid and we needed to ensure that the right protective equipment is in place to ensure the safety of the children at the school, as well as the reliability of the electrical system,” Dow added.

The recent shutdown of three windmills at an elementary school in Michigan’s Thumb has put state regulators on the hot seat. Putting heat on the Michigan Public Service Commission in Lansing will hopefully help get three windmills at Laker Elementary School near Pigeon turned back on, and make it easier for future wind developers to locate here, said State Sen. Jim Barcia, D-Bay City. Barcia said he plans to send a letter, likely today, ‘’requesting that the PSC play a stronger leadership role'’ in resolving the Laker school issue without putting an undue financial hardship on the school. Two weeks ago, the school windmills were shut down by a contractor after DTE Energy raised safety and reliability concerns about the turbines, including whether the electrical grid can handle additional generation and whether line workers could be injured by power from the turbines during an outage.

The wind has been taken right out of a second wind energy project in the Thumb Area. Last month, Michigan’s first wind farm near Ubly was put on hold until next year. Now a smaller wind energy project in the Laker School District near Pigeon has been shut down by DTE Energy. The utility company says safety is the reason, but others disagree.

HOLLAND -- Airport officials don't want modern, sky-high versions of windmills near the Tulip City Airport.

Ice throw is a concern related to the fact that any object at the end of the rotating blades is traveling at a high rate of speed. In the case of a 60 meter turbine (about 200’ diameter), rotating at 20 RPM, the tip of the blade is traveling at just over 140 mph. If the turbine diameter increases to 80 meters, the tip speed increases to just over 187 mph. There are reports of ice having accumulated at the tip of the turbine and upon breaking loose, traveling significant distance......