A four-acre grass fire broke out near Highway 101 and San Antonio Road yesterday and pushed into a solar facility near the WM Redwood Landfill before firefighters stopped it from spreading any further. The blaze, dubbed the Petaluma Fire, ignited around 8:15 PM in the stretch of grassland that straddles the Marin-Sonoma county line, just south of Petaluma and north of Novato.
Cal Fire reported the vegetation fire near Highway 101 and San Antonio Road in Sonoma County, and firefighters battled the blaze as it moved toward the nearby solar facility, according to NBC Bay Area. The fire made its way into the solar site, per Cal Fire, prompting a scramble to keep the flames from doing further damage as crews assessed the scene in what remains a developing situation.
The Novato Fire Department and Cal Fire LNU requested four additional engines and a water tender as the fire crept toward the solar array, according to Patch. Firefighters managed to stop the fire’s forward progress by around 8:20 PM, aided by a local road that helped hold the western flank of the blaze, the outlet reported.
Why Fighting Fire at a Solar Site Is Different
Solar installations present a unique hazard once flames reach them. Photovoltaic panels stay energized any time they’re exposed to light, which creates an electrocution risk and means crews generally cannot spray direct water streams onto live electrical components, according to operational safety guidelines published by Palladium Energy. Instead, crews typically have to hold a defensive perimeter until power feeds can be isolated…