Fire Breaks Out at California Battery Storage Facility, Prompting Evacuation Orders
The facility is known for housing one of the largest battery storage systems globally.
Emergency evacuations are currently taking place in Northern California following a significant fire that began Thursday afternoon at one of the largest battery storage facilities worldwide.
The North Monterey County Unified School District has declared that all schools and offices will be shut down on Friday due to the fire.
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The specific cause of the fire has not yet been determined.
This battery storage facility, operated by Vistra Energy from Texas, contains tens of thousands of lithium batteries crucial for energy storage from renewable sources such as solar. If ignited, these batteries can create exceptionally challenging fires to extinguish.
According to a representative from Vistra, all personnel on-site were safely evacuated once the fire started. A thorough investigation will commence once the fire is contained.
“The safety of the community and our personnel is our utmost priority, and Vistra sincerely thanks our local emergency responders for their ongoing support,” stated Jenny Lyon, a spokesperson for the company.
The Epoch Times has reached out to a Vistra Energy representative for further comments.
This is not the first time that fires have occurred at the Vistra plant; earlier incidents took place in 2021 and 2022 due to malfunctions in the fire sprinkler system, which led to overheating in some units, according to The Mercury News.
This report includes contributions from the Associated Press.