On the night of May 15, 2022, a strong windstorm blew through downtown Nashville. This windstorm dislodged and catastrophically damaged the CB Ragland owned rooftop Solar Photovoltaic system. Due to components of the system hanging over the buildings edge, immediate intervention was needed to prevent further damage to the system, property, people, and vehicles below.

Stansell Electric’s Customer Solutions group responded to the site, assessed the damage and potential dangers. These potential dangers included electrical shock, cuts, and working at heights with materials potentially falling. The team laid out a safe working zone, roped off all roof edges, placed caution tape and mobilized their crane to the site for removal of damaged and loose components.

After strategizing a safe way to remove energized solar panels that pose a constant risk including heights, the team within one day successfully and safely dismantled extensively damaged materials and removed those components from the rooftop. The team then repaired a portion of the solar panels on the remaining system leaving about half of the full system secured. With a solid injury free plan in place, there were no recorded injuries nor additional property damage.

Phase 2 of the project will be to build a new Solar Photovoltaic system to replace the entire damaged system.