According to fire chief John Garmer, the wind turbine had a "ball of flame" on top when firefighters arrived at the scene. ...The fire was located at the six-turbine Ewington Wind Farm, the same site where a wind generator burned two months ago.

Emergency calls flooded the Jackson County Law Enforcement Center last Wednesday morning as passers-by on Interstate 90 in western Jackson County witnessed huge plumes of smoke ascending to the clouds. The fire originated from one of the six power-generating windmills on the Ewington Township Wind Farm, located south of Okabena just north of I-90. ...After the fire was controlled, the scene was turned over to Suzlon officials, who are conducting an investigation. "We are still investigating a cause," said Suzlon Vice President Ken Glazier. "The fire was controlled quickly and brought to a safe stop. There were no injuries and the damage was limited to the one cell."

A wind turbine near Dodge Center lost one of its blades Friday night when lightning struck it and started a fire.

A wind turbine near Dodge Center lost one of its blades Friday night when lightning struck it and started a fire. The Rochester Fire Deparment was called to the fire because it had the closest long-ladder truck. Its 100-foot ladder was used to help extinguish the fire at 11:15 p.m. One rotor blade was lost, but fire officials were uncertain if the fire reached the generator portion of the device, which could compound the loss.

MILWAUKEE - Large turbines generating electricity in a radar line of sight can harm the ability of air defense radars to detect and track aircraft or other aerial objects, the U.S. Department of Defense said Thursday in a new study. The only way to make sure that U.S. forces can perform their air defense missions is to avoid putting the wind turbines in the line of sight of the radars, said the report submitted to the Senate and House Armed Services committees. Efforts have started to find other ways but they "require further development and validation" before they can be used, given that some turbines with rotating blades reach 500 feet high, the report said. "The numbers, height and rotation of these wind turbines present technical challenges to the effectiveness of radar systems that must be carefully evaluated on a case-by-case basis to ensure acceptable military readiness is maintained," the report said.

WASHINGTON — The Federal Aviation Administration has given the go-ahead to three Minnesota wind power projects after concluding they don't interfere with military radar.

WASHINGTON — Lawmakers from Minnesota and Wisconsin are urging the federal government to quickly resolve delays on wind energy projects caused by a Department of Defense study of whether wind turbines interfere with military radar.