Massive Fire at California Battery Plant Triggers Evacuations

The fire that broke out Friday in one of the largest battery storage facilities in the world, located in Northern California, sent toxic smoke into the air. This forced 1,700 people to evacuate and closed a major highway.

 

The fire in Moss Landing began on Thursday, sending plumes of smoke and towering flames into the air. Fire Chief Joel Mendoza, of the North County Fire Protection District in Monterey County, said that the size of the smoke and flames had decreased significantly by Friday morning.

 

Mendoza stated that “there is very little, or none, of a smoke plume coming from the building.” He said that crews were not battling the fire, but rather waiting for it to burn out.

 

According to Nicholas Pasculli, Monterey County spokesperson, the fire did not spread beyond the facility. Pasculli stated that as of late Thursday night, only a handful of people remained at the temporary evacuation center, while others had made arrangements with friends, family, or other individuals.

 

 

Vistra Energy, a Texas-based company, owns the Moss Landing Power Plant in California, which contains tens and thousands of lithium batteries. Batteries are essential for storing energy from renewable sources such as solar power, but they can also be difficult to extinguish if they catch fire.

 

There’s no way of sugarcoating it. Monterey County supervisor Glenn Church said to KSBW-TV that the situation was a catastrophe. He said that he didn’t expect the fire to spread outside the concrete building in which it was contained.

 

Residents voiced concerns over the impact of the fire on air quality at an emergency meeting of the Monterey County Board of Supervisors held on Friday.

 

“It appears that the fire department did not have the right fire retardants to minimize this blaze and had to resort to letting it burn. This exposes all the residents including Watsonville, Santa Cruz County, and is extremely distressing,” said resident Silvia Morales.

 

According to The Mercury News, there were fires in the Vistra plant between 2021 and 2022 caused by a malfunctioning fire sprinkler system that led to some units overheating.

 

Batteries like those at Moss Landing help to stabilize the grid and reduce the amount of energy generated by fossil fuels that emit greenhouse gases. California, a pioneer in battery storage, leads the country with over 11 gigawatt-hours online.

 

 

Experts agree that lithium batteries are an essential technology for improving grid reliability and reducing carbon emissions. They can cause a fire hazard if damaged or overheated.

 

Timothy Fox, the managing director of ClearView Energy Partners (a non-partisan research firm specializing in energy) said: “We’re not convinced this incident will materially change the national trend for grid-scale battery deployment.”

 

The cause of this latest fire was not known. Vistra stated in a press release that everyone was safely evacuated from the site after it was discovered. An investigation will start after the fire has been put out.

 

Jenny Lyon, Vistra’s spokesperson, stated that “our top priority is to ensure the safety of our community and personnel. We are grateful for the assistance provided by our local emergency responders.”

 

North Monterey County Unified School District announced that all schools will be closed on Friday, due to the fire.