GRANDY, N.C. — A recently completed North Carolina solar farm suffered a setback on Friday, after several panels were severely damaged by Hurricane Dorian.
The solar farm is located in the Grandy area of Currituck County, on the site of the old Goose Creek Golf Course. The array was completed over summer, but now will need repairs. The field the panels are located in was also flooded by an overflowing drainage ditch.
Resident Steven Brown saw the damage during the height of the storm, saying the floodwaters were being blown about into waves that would come up and crash down.
"This is our main concern, watching it all morning and wondering how well the system is going to hold up in a hurricane," Brown said. "And this was just a Category 1 hurricane offshore, not a direct hit."
Brown added that he and other residents are seeing their worst fears realized with how easy it seemed the panels were ripped from the ground by Dorian's winds.
"Before it was just a golf course, and trees which wasn't that big of a problem. But now with the proximity of the solar panels here, we're worried about wind picking these things up and crashing into our homes," Brown said.