Shocking moment wind turbine is blown apart after Storm Gerrit brought 85mph winds to Britain
28 December 2023, 19:06
This is the horrifying moment a wind turbine is blown to pieces in heavy winds in Storm Gerrit.
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Footage shared online shows the blades of the turbine, which is in Ayrshire in Scotland, rotating faster and faster before blowing off.
Firefighters were called to the scene after a blaze broke out, but it died down before they arrived.
No one appears to have been hurt in the wind turbine incident. They can cost up to several million pounds each.
It came as Storm Gerrit blew through Britain on Wednesday and Thursday, bringing winds of up to 85mph and causing massive travel chaos. 27,000 were also left without power by the storm.
Wind turbine in Ayrshire yesterday morning, totally shredded in the strong winds associated with #StormGerrit.
— Aéro 🇬🇧 (@Dedicated_Being) December 28, 2023
They should have a limit in windspeed, and automatically turn off to prevent the motor malfunctioning like this. pic.twitter.com/GBS5HAOfja
Meanwhile about 100 houses in Stalybridge in Greater Manchester were hit by a tornado overnight on Thursday with some buildings left exposed after their sides and roofs were ripped out.
Scottish Fire and Rescue Service said: "We were alerted to a reports of a fire within a wind turbine at 10.28am on Wednesday, 27 December near Newhouse Farm, Sorn.
“Operations Control mobilised one appliance to the scene, the fire was extinguished prior to the arrival of firefighters.
“The crew left after ensuring the area was made safe."
The Met Office, which issued a raft of rain and wind warnings for Storm Gerrit on Wednesday, said Greater Manchester was hit by a "supercell thunderstorm" that caused severe damage on Thursdasy.
"We know from our Dopplar radar that it had a strong rotating updraft. Whilst we don't yet have surface data to confirm, the presence of these features suggests a tornado at the surface was likely," it added.
On Thursday, it said the weather in the region was not letting up.
"A supercell thunderstorm is currently moving east across Morecambe Bay, Lancashire," the Met Office said on X.
