Paul R. Vance of Indianapolis, 38, died September 18 at the Benton County Wind Farm near Earl Park, IN when one of the facility’s 87 turbines exploded. The accident has resulted in a massive wind spill. Orion Energy Group, LLC, which manages the facility, expressed confidence in its ability to mitigate the disaster. “It is always tragic when our quest to provide energy claims human life,” reported company spokesman Gerald Puter. “And the tragedy is magnified by the ongoing effects of a spill such as this one. There may be wind leaking from our turbine and flowing over the northwest Indiana fields right now, but our crews are working around the clock to contain the spill. I think the environmental impact of this disaster is likely to have been very, very modest.” Orion has deployed wind-containment booms and chemical wind dispersants, but environmentalists are skeptical of these efforts. Already volunteers are descending on Benton County to clean the spilled wind from local wildlife and from farmer’s crops.
