Targeted attack cited in power outage in Moore County, NC

Published on December 05, 2022 by Liz Carey


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Duke Energy anticipates repairs to two Moore County, N.C., substations damaged in what authorities are calling a targeted attack could take until Thursday.

Officials said vandals fired guns at the substations damaging several large and vital pieces of equipment. Repairing the equipment is a multi-step process Duke said, and will take several days to complete. Once repairs are made, the equipment must be tested before the company can begin to restore power.

The attack happened on Saturday night around 7 p.m., sending some 45,000 customers into darkness. Since then, Duke officials said, about 7,000 customers have had power restored, but officials expect it will be days before some 36,000 customers see the power come back on.

“Duke Energy is pursuing multiple repair paths to restore as many customers as possible, as quickly and safely as possible, ” Jason Hollifield, Duke Energy’s general manager, Emergency Preparedness, said on Dec. 4. “This is a significant local outage that is affecting nearly all customers in Moore County. While some customers will be restored sooner, most customers should be prepared for an extended outage that could last until Thursday.”

U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm tweeted Sunday that she had been in contact with Duke Energy and the agency’s Office of Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response was working with state and local officials.

Officials said it could cost Duke Energy millions to repair and replace the damaged equipment.

During a press conference, streamed Sunday on Facebook, Moore County Sheriff Ronnie Fields said the attacks were unlike anything he had encountered before, carried out by an individual or individuals who “knew exactly what they were doing.”

The FBI and the North Carolina Bureau of Investigation have joined the investigation of the attack, North Carolina Rep. Richard Hudson said in a statement.

“Last night, unknown individuals vandalized at least two substations in Moore County with criminal intent. Motive for this crime remains unknown,” he said. ” I want to thank Sheriff Ronnie Fields and all local law enforcement as well as the SBI and FBI for their quick action to respond to the incident. I have also been in contact with Duke Energy and know they are working on all options to restore power as quickly as possible.”

The Pilot News, the local newspaper, said schools in the area had been canceled and the county had been placed under a 9 p.m. to 5 a.m. curfew. County officials opened up a shelter for those affected by the outage. Traffic lights are off throughout the county, prompting law enforcement from across the state to come in and help at intersections. Moore County officials declared an official disaster on Sunday afternoon.

Moore County Board of Commissioners Chairman Frank Quis said during the press conference that residents should check on their neighbors and people they know may be in need. “We in the county government can reach out, but we can’t reach out to everyone,” he said. “It’s incumbent on our citizens to be a part of the solution here.”