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Wind turbine debris recovered from ocean floor off Nantucket
GE Vernova sent two vessels to retrieve debris from the sea floor near the Vineyard Wind farm Sunday after the blade broke off in July.
The manufacturers of the damaged wind turbine that sent shards of debris to nearby Nantucket began a recovery effort Sunday to remove blade debris from the bottom of the ocean.
The blade of the turbine, which was manufactured by GE Vernova and is part of the Vineyard Wind project, broke off in July and affected Nantucket beaches with fiberglass shards and floating debris. Debris even made its way to multiple beaches in Falmouth on Cape Cod.
GE said its preliminary investigation found the blade fell into the ocean due to a “manufacturing deviation.” Vineyard Wind, the country’s first large-scale offshore wind farm, is located about 15 miles south of Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard.
GE Vernova, headquartered in Cambridge, told the Nantucket Select Board Chair that they dispatched two vessels to retrieve debris from the ocean floor on Sunday. One vessel, the HOS Mystique, grabbed larger pieces, and the other was sent to recover any smaller pieces that could break off during the process.
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The first piece was recovered smoothly without any “break-off,” Vernova said, and the effort resumed Tuesday. While the first piece didn’t break, the second vessel will continue to trail the Mystique.
The debris from the broken turbine prompted an outcry from Nantucket residents. In August, Vineyard Wind cut off the remaining portions of the damaged blade to prevent additional debris falling into the ocean.
“We are the guinea pigs of this industry,” one resident Vallorie Oliver said during a July meeting where residents raised concerns about the wind farm project.
The wind farm began delivering energy from five of its planned 62 wind turbines in February. When it’s fully operational, it will generate electricity for more than 400,000 homes.
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“We will continue to keep the community informed as the recovery operation progresses,” GE Vernova said in a statement to Nantucket residents.
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