Bergey Windpower News

Bergey 10 kW Turbine Survives Nearby F5 Tornado

 May 10, 1999

Moore, Oklahoma:  "I only had been down in my storm shelter for a minute when I heard this awful racket.  I peeked out the door, and the building was gone."  Delbert Thornhill described the total destruction of his garage as an F5 tornado ripped through his property on Monday, May 3, 1999.  Standing twenty feet from his destroyed garage is the tower of his Bergey 10 kW wind turbine, which survived the tornado relatively unscathed.

F5's are the strongest, most destructive, and deadliest of tornados and they typically have peak wind speeds in excess of 250 mph.  The Moore tornado of May 3rd killed over forty people and destroyed several thousand homes.  The Moore tornado passed very close to Mr. Thornhill's home, but did not strike it directly.

Mr. Thornhill installed his Bergey wind turbine as a grid-intertie system in 1985 and has been steadily selling electricity back to his local utility for the last fourteen years.  The turbine, located in the heart of "tornado alley", has experienced many severe storms over the last decade-plus, but never anything of this magnitude.  The system sustained only slight damage resulting from debris impacting the machine and tower.  For, example, a piece of lumber was driven into the junction box at the base of the tower with such force that it pierced the sheet metal enclosure and became imbedded in the box.  Mr. Thornhill is confident that, with a few minor repairs, his Bergey Excel wind turbine will continue to generate clean, sustainable electricity for years to come.

Click here for pictures of Mr. Thornhill's system after the tornado, along with more stories about Bergey turbines and tornados.

   Steve Wilke, Customer Service, Bergey WindPower Co.

   T:  405-364-4212    F: 405-364-2078    E-mail:  swilke@bergey.com