"Unacceptable" - Select Board Calls Out Vineyard Wind's Delay In Notification Of Lightning Strike

Vineyard Wind's delay in notifying the town about the late-February lightning strike on the damaged turbine was called "unacceptable" by the Select Board this week.

It marked the second time Nantucket's elected officials have criticized Vineyard Wind's communication in less than a year, following the blade failure last July when the offshore wind company took three days to notify the town about the incident. 

During the public comment session of its weekly meeting on March 5, island resident Amy Eldridge asked if it was normal for Vineyard Wind to take three days to notify the town of a "catastrophic failure." The Select Board responded to the question this week, stating in writing that "The town has communicated to Vineyard Wind, GE Vernova, BSEE, MA EEA, and Senator Markey's office that Vineyard Wind's failure to notify Nantucket about the lightning strike in a timely and proactive manner is unacceptable."

Vineyard Wind spokesman Craig Gilvarg did not respond to a message seeking comment.

While the town signed the so-called "Good Neighbor Agreement" with Vineyard Wind in 2020 - which requires Nantucket officials to "convey support for (Vineyard Wind's) projects" - the Select Board has offered some its most pointed criticism of the offshore wind developer in recent weeks, including a recent meeting in which Dawn Hill Holdgate stated "We as a board, and the community at large even more vehemently, really feel misled by the representations we were given back in 2020"

While there were conflicting reports on when exactly the lightning strike occurred either Thursday, Feb. 27, or Friday, Feb. 28 - Vineyard Wind did not inform the town about the incident until Sunday afternoon, March 2, according to Nantucket Select Board chair Brooke Mohr. Mohr told the Current she had received a call from Vineyard Wind CEO Klaus Moeller around 3 p.m. that day about the lightning strike.

Vineyard Wind claims no debris was spotted around the turbine in the hours and days after the lightning strike. It was, however, the same turbine - known as AW-38 - that had one of its three blades snap into thousands of pieces last July 13th, sending large amounts of fiberglass and foam debris onto Nantucket's shores which forced the town to close all south shore beaches for a full day. While Vineyard Wind had previously removed the large pieces of the blade that were left dangling from the turbine rotor after the failure, the nub of the damaged blade remains attached at the 12 o'clock position on the turbine.

According to an email obtained by the Current from U.S. Coast Guard Command Duty Officer Meghan Manship, the lightning strike occurred on Thursday, February 27th. Manship wrote that the turbine "was struck by lightning on 27FEB25, caught fire, and detached...F/V Madison Kate is o/s and reported no sign of debris."

The Bureau of Safety & Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) stated last week that the turbine that was struck by lightning had a non-operational lightning protection system due to the blade failure it suffered last July. The federal agency stated that it is overseeing the assessment and response to the lightning strike, and is requiring Vineyard Wind to conduct a "comprehensive assessment" to determine the extent of the damage done to the turbine.

"Overflights and on-scene vessels did not find initial debris in the water," a BSEE spokesperson said. "The turbine’s lightning protection system was not operational due to the July 13, 2024, blade failure. All other wind turbines are equipped with lightning protection."