The possible answer for recent solar panel fires

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WLNE) — Recent fires ABC 6 News has been out covering have ended up being because of solar panels.

“Solar panel fires as well as roof fires are very labor intensive,” said Cumberland Fire Chief Nicholas Anderson.

On Monday there was a six-alarm fire at a commercial building in Cumberland and the Fire Chief said the most likely cause is the solar panels on the roof.

One local solar panel business owner does not think the panels are not necessarily the problem.

“I wouldn’t put any blame on solar panels as far as starting fires, my concern is more on a battery,” said Go Power Solar owner, Conrad Kiefer.”The issue with lithium is, it’s kind of volatile so if there is a short in a battery and one of the cells starts going off it sets all the cells off nearby.”

Firefighters said solar panel fires are certainly becoming more common.

“We are seeing an uptick in solar panels as the technology evolves and more are installed, then the more we are going to come into play for these types of events,” said Anderson.

Kiefer suggested one way to handle an emergency.

“There’s an emergency shut-off switch outside next to the meter so if they are producing power it’s not transmitting to the grid at the very least,” concluded Kiefer.