Solar panel fault causes loft fire in Twickenham

Four fire engines and around 25 firefighters were called to a blaze on Warburton Road in Twickenham yesterday afternoon (4th March).

The fire broke out in a semi-detached house, destroying half of the property’s loft space and causing minor damage to the neighbouring loft. Fortunately, three occupants managed to escape the building before the London Fire Brigade arrived.

The cause of the fire is believed to be accidental, linked to a fault within a solar panel inverter. To tackle the blaze safely, firefighters used a specialist product called PVStop.

PVStop is a black liquid polymer coating that acts like a ‘liquid tarpaulin’. It is sprayed directly onto solar panels to block the sunlight that powers them. By stopping the conversion of light into electricity, the panels are ‘turned off’, allowing crews to work safely without the risk of high-voltage shocks.

The Brigade’s 999 control officers were alerted to the fire at 14:01. Crews from Twickenham and Heston fire stations were mobilised to the scene, bringing the fire under control by 15:27.

This article was published by the London Fire Brigade on 05/03/2026 and can be viewed at https://www.london-fire.gov.uk/incidents/2026/march/house-fire-twickenham/