New fire sparks in ‘previously burned section’ of Moss Landing battery plant
A second, smaller fire ignited in the ashes of the Moss Landing battery plant on Tuesday.
Smoke billowed out of a “previously burned section of the building” on Tuesday evening, a Wednesday statement from Vistra Corp said.
The Texas-based energy company owns the battery energy storage facility at Moss Landing in Monterey County and previously proposed building a 600 megawatt battery plant in Morro Bay.
The North County Fire Protection District investigated the fire on Tuesday evening and continued to monitor it on Wednesday.
“Continuous air quality monitoring is ongoing and no hazardous air conditions have been detected,” Vistra’s statement said.
Further details on the status of the fire were not immediately available Wednesday evening.
The original Moss Landing fire on Jan. 16 prompted a temporary closure of Highway 1 and the evacuation of more than 1,000 residents. No one was injured in the blaze.
The first fire revived fears in Morro Bay about the dangers of battery energy storage facilities, and the Morro Bay City Council temporarily blocked the approval of new permits for any such project.
Meanwhile, California State Assembly Member Dawn Addis proposed a bill that would set new safety standards for battery energy storage facilities and require local governments to award permits for such development in their communities instead of the California Energy Commission.
