By Dan Browning
Minneapolis Star Tribune
Farmer Mark Schroeder of Elgin, Minn., knew something was seriously wrong when he heard a noise from his new windmill that sounded like a helicopter landing on the roof of his house.
“You could hear the noise 2 or 3 miles away,” he said.
The windmill shook furiously atop its 160-foot tower. Black smoke billowed from the control unit. Schroeder said he tried shutting off the power, but the windmill’s three 25-foot-long blades continued spinning furiously. One of the 500-pound
blades eventually sheared off and flew about 100 yards into a field, bringing Schroeder’s dream of energy independence crashing to earth.
That was last February. Schroeder said the Excelsior company that sold and installed the unit, Renewable Energy SD, promised to replace it but never has, and no longer responds to his calls.
