Six critical incidents led Amazon to shut down US rooftop solar systems
Amazon suspended its US rooftop solar operations after six facilities experienced fire or arc flash incidents between 2020 and 2021. An audit revealed that the issues were caused by poor installation and connector defects rather than faulty solar panels.
Why it matters
This incident underscores the critical importance of quality control and professional installation standards in the rapidly expanding renewable energy sector.
Rooftop solar systems are designed to produce electricity for years, but problems in their wiring and connections can create serious safety risks. Amazon faced this issue at several of its facilities in North America between April 2020 and June 2021, when six solar sites reported critical fire or arc flash events.Amazon had solar installations at 47 North American sites. Six of them experienced either a fire or an arc flash event during the 14-month period. This meant that about 12.7% of the sites with solar installations were affected.The incidents included a three-alarm fire at an Amazon fulfilment centre in Fresno, California, on April 14, 2020. The fire damaged 220 solar modules. Fourteen months later, a two-alarm fire at a facility in Perryville, Maryland, brought around 60 firefighters to the site.The incidents led Amazon to take its US solar operations offline by June 2021.
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