SUMMERSIDE — A battery fire at a solar farm that supplies power for Summerside, P.E.I., triggered a voluntary evacuation after nearby residents were told to shelter in place on Monday -- and while the fire was later contained, the city said firefighters would likely remain at the scene into the night. “It’s a state-of-the-art facility. We’re pretty proud of it. It’s an unfortunate incident, obviously, that took place here this morning,” a spokesman for the city, Tanner Doiron, said Sunday in an interview from the fire scene. Earlier in the day, police and firefighters responded to the fire at the city-owned Summerside Sunbank Solar/Battery Farm. People along South Drive, from MacKenzie Drive to Bayview Drive, were told to stay inside. The city later said the fire was contained, but the shelter advisory remained in effect. The city said in a statement later on Monday that it had also issued a voluntary evacuation notice to people who lived within 500 metres of the solar farm “out of an abundance of caution.” It said the evacuation was related to smoke conditions, and that weather conditions “appear favourable for the next 12-24 hours.” Nearby residents were told earlier in the day to close all windows and doors, turn off any ventilation systems and avoid travelling through the affected area. A road closure in the area also remained in effect. Doiron said it was still an active fire on Monday afternoon, and the cause wasn’t yet known. He said the shelter-in-place was precautionary, since the smoke from the solar farm’s batteries could be toxic. “It’s not something you can douse with a bunch of water. You have to do it carefully and meticulously,” Doiron explained about fighting battery fires. He noted it’s not recommended to pour water directly onto them. “You can use certain attack points in terms of how you’re going to mist the water over, but not directly apply (water) to it.” The city says the solar farm opened in 2024 and has a capacity of 21.6 megawatts. At the time it opened, it produced enough electricity to power the equivalent of 2,500 homes and has expanded since then, Doiron said. Summerside has a wind farm as well, he added, and at any given time the city gets approximately two-thirds of its power from renewable energy. He said there hasn’t been a fire in the solar farm’s battery system before. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 7, 2026.
