Large fire breaks out at solar farm owned by Warrington Borough Council
A LARGE fire broke out at a solar farm owned by Warrington Borough Council.
Gloucestershire Fire and Rescue Service was called to a fire at Cirencester Hybrid Solar Farm in Gloucestershire on Friday afternoon.
The solar farm was completed in 2022, with electricity from the site used to power Warrington’s fleet of all-electric buses.
Measuring more than 88 acres in size, the equivalent of more than 50 football pitches, and with 43,000 solar panels, it is said to be ‘one of the most technically-advanced solar farms globally’.
Sustainable energy business Gridserve, which manages the solar farm on behalf of the council, confirmed the location of the fire was indeed Cirencester Hybrid Solar Farm.
Residents living near the site were warned to keep windows and doors closed, with large flames reported by eyewitnesses.
A spokesman for Gloucestershire Fire and Rescue Service said that an electrical installation was on fire at the solar farm, impacting two shipping containers containing lithium-ion batteries.
However, the work of firefighters prevented the fire from spreading to a third shipping container.
The cause of the blaze is being investigated.
The fire service spokesman said: “We were called to a fire at a solar farm at 3.31pm on Friday. Six fire engines were sent to the scene.
“An electrical installation was on fire affecting two 20ftx10ft shipping containers containing lithium-ion batteries.
“The work of the crews prevented the fire from spreading to a third container. We liaised with on-site security while we were there, and the stop time was 10.04pm.
“The cause of the fire is being investigated.”
Warrington Borough Council was approached for a statement on the incident, but it referred to a statement issued by Gridserve.
A Gridserve spokesman said: “We are aware of an incident at a location we manage, and we are working with emergency services and partners.
“We take safety extremely seriously, and the incident is under investigation.
“We are not able to provide further information at this time.”