If the raging wildfires across Los Angeles County weren't enough, California faced another crisis overnight as one of the world's largest battery storage facilities, situated about 100 miles south of San Francisco, caught fire, triggering area-wide evacuations.
AP News reported that a fire broke out Thursday at the Moss Landing Power Plant, a natural gas-fired generation plant with thousands of lithium batteries for energy storage. Fires involving lithium batteries, as seen with electric vehicles, are notoriously difficult to extinguish and could burn uncontrollably for days.
"There's no way to sugarcoat it. This is a disaster, is what it is," Monterey County Supervisor Glenn Church told local media outlet KSBW-TV. However, Church did not expect the fire to spread outside the perimeter of the plant.
Local media outlet The Mercury News noted that fires at the Vistra plant, which Vistra Energy owns, and one of the largest battery storage facilities in the world boasting a capacity of 750 megawatts and 3,000 megawatt-hours, experienced fires in 2021 and 2022. The energy storage facility plays a massive role in stabilizing California's power grid.
It's unclear at this point what started the fire. Local authorities evacuated more than 2,000 people around the plant due to concerns over hazardous materials and potential chemical releases.
"Our top priority is the safety of the community and our personnel, and Vistra deeply appreciates the continued assistance of our local emergency responders," Jenny Lyon, a spokesperson for Vistra, said in a statement.
KSBW said Vistra confirmed the fire was detected in the 300-MW Phase I energy storage facility.
Currently, numerous emergency crews are on the scene of a massive fire broke out at the Moss Landing Power Plant's lithium battery storage facility in California. Evacuation orders have been issued, and residents in the vicinity are advised to shelter in place immediately due to hazardous toxins being released into the air. Authorities are urging people to follow these safety measures Seal all doors and windows: Use tape or damp towels to cover gaps and prevent smoke ingress. Turn off ventilation systems: Disable fans, heaters, and air conditioners to avoid drawing in outside air. This incident marks at least the fourth occurrence of battery-related emergencies at the Moss Landing facility this is still developing.
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