STUART, Iowa — A wind turbine went up in flames Tuesday afternoon at a wind farm west of Stuart.

According to MidAmerican Energy just before 12 p.m. they were notified of a wind turbine that had caught on fire at the Arbor Hill wind farm and that the fire had spread to the harvested field below.

  • Aerial view of wind turbine fire. Photo courtesy of Ed Arthur.
  • Photo of wind turbine fire near Stuart. Photo courtesy of Ed Arthur.
  • Smoke from field following wind turbine fire. Photo courtesy of Ed Arthur.

Firefighters from the Stuart and Menlo Fire Departments responded and were able to safely put out the flames. No injuries occurred.

The cause of the fire is currently unknown, but wind turbines contain highly flammable materials like transformer and hydraulic oils. MidAmerican said they are working with the fire departments and the turbine manufacturer, Vestas-American Wind Technology, to determine what happened.