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Analysis on Major Accident Caused by Bolt Fracture in Xinjiang Hami Wind Power Project
Against the backdrop of the vigorous development of the new energy industry, wind power generation, as an important representative of clean and renewable energy, is gradually becoming a key force in the energy structure. However, a recent major accident at the Xinjiang Hami Wind Power Project has sounded a warning bell for safety across the entire industry.
The project is designed to install 259 wind turbines and officially started construction on March 30, 2025, divided into 5 construction sections. On June 24, 2025, the tragedy occurred in the 3rd Section. On that day, a subcontractor organized construction workers to carry out blade hoisting operations. At 16:10, the blade hoisting work was successfully completed. But only 3 minutes later, when preparing for turning (rotating the turbine), the turning tooling torque arm provided by the manufacturer suddenly collided violently with worker Mr. Wen, who fell to the ground instantly with injuries. Mr. Liang, a technical staff member of the manufacturer, reacted quickly: he immediately used a walkie-talkie to call the ground hoisting commander and dialed the 120 emergency number at the same time. Despite all-out rescue efforts, the injured ultimately died due to severe injuries.
Preliminary investigation results show that the culprit was the fracture of the base bolts of the turning tooling torque arm. The breakage of this small bolt caused the torque arm to fail and disengage instantly, thereby colliding with worker Mr. Wen. However, behind this superficial cause, there are deeper-seated issues that need to be explored.
From the perspective of equipment quality, the loss of control over the quality of the manufacturer’s tooling bolts is an important factor. During the equipment manufacturing process, strict quality inspection of the bolts may not have been conducted—substandard materials may have been used, or there may have been defects in the production process. As key connecting components, bolts bear enormous torque and vibration for a long time. Once their quality is substandard, the risk of fracture will increase significantly in high-intensity operating environments.
In terms of safety management, many loopholes have also been exposed. The high-risk operation site lacks effective video monitoring, making it impossible to grasp the operation dynamics in real time and difficult to issue timely warnings for potential dangerous situations. At the same time, the insufficient safety distance between workers and operating equipment reflects negligence in operation planning and on-site management. In addition, the safety review and training for outsourced workers may have been a mere formality, with the phenomenon of "contracting out management responsibilities" (i.e., delegating management duties entirely to subcontractors without proper oversight). This has led to insufficient awareness of potential risks among workers and weak self-protection awareness.
This accident has brought a heavy lesson to the wind power industry. During project construction, it is essential to strengthen the control of equipment quality: every link, from raw material procurement and manufacturing to factory inspection, must be implemented in strict accordance with standards to ensure the reliability and safety of equipment. At the same time, it is necessary to improve safety management systems, strengthen on-site supervision, and increase technical means such as video monitoring to ensure the safety of high-risk operations. For outsourced workers, management cannot be relaxed—they should be integrated into a unified safety training and management system to improve their safety awareness and operational skills.
The accident at the Xinjiang Hami Wind Power Project is not just an individual tragedy, but also an opportunity for the entire wind power industry to reflect and improve. Only by treating every link with a rigorous attitude and implementing every safety measure in accordance with strict standards can we ensure the safe and stable progress of wind power projects and provide a solid guarantee for the development of clean energy.