(Trends Wide) — With no suspects or motives announced, the FBI joined the investigation into power outages in a North Carolina county believed to have been caused by “intentional” and “targeted” attacks on substations that left some 40,000 customers stranded. darkness on Saturday night, prompting a curfew and an emergency declaration.
The massive power outage in Moore County became a criminal investigation when responding utility crews found signs of possible equipment vandalism at different sites, including two substations that had been damaged by gunfire, according to the County Sheriff’s Office. from Moore.
“The person or people who did this knew exactly what they were doing,” Moore County Sheriff Ronnie Fields said during a news conference Sunday. “We have no idea why (it happened in) Moore County.”
Fields said multiple rounds were fired at the two substations. “It was targeted, it wasn’t random,” he said.
The sheriff would not say whether the criminal activity was domestic terrorism, but noted that “no group has come forward to acknowledge or accept that they were [los que lo hicieron]”.
Authorities announced a mandatory curfew from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m., effective Sunday night. Fields said the decision was made to protect residents and businesses.
In addition to the FBI, the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation joined the investigation, authorities said.
More than 33,000 customers were still in the dark across the county as of Sunday night, Duke Energy’s outage map showed. For some, the outage may extend into Thursday, authorities said, disrupting the lives of tens of thousands.
All county schools will be closed this Monday and authorities have opened a shelter that runs on a generator.
Traffic lights are also out, and while some stores with generators were able to open their doors, several businesses and churches in Moore County closed Sunday, Trends Wide affiliate WRAL reported.
“We were getting over the covid. And now this,” the sheriff said, adding: “It’s going to hurt all of our restaurants and businesses.”
Inside people’s homes, it has become difficult to maintain a good temperature in the face of winter.
“We have a six-month-old baby at home. We don’t have a heat source. We’re trying to get heat for her,” Carthage resident Chris Thompson told WRAL.
Cold temperatures, with lows below 0 degrees Celsius, were expected in the area overnight Sunday with highs in the 50s and rain likely Monday, according to the National Weather Service. Moore County is located in central North Carolina, about 50 miles northwest of Fayetteville.
Millions of dollars in damage from blackouts
The estimated cost of the damage to the substation is in the millions, the sheriff said Sunday.
The damage has been significant and diverting power is not an option, said Jeff Brooks, Duke Energy’s senior manager of communications.
“The equipment will have to be replaced,” Brooks said. “We are pursuing multiple restoration paths so we can return power to as many customers as quickly as possible. Recognizing that, we are looking at a fairly sophisticated repair with a fairly large team.”
In addition to the gunshot damage at the substations, a door at one of the locations appears to have been ripped off its hinges, Asst. Chief Mike Cameron of the Southern Pines Fire and Rescue Department told Trends Wide.
While it’s unclear what motivated the alleged vandalism, the sheriff on Sunday addressed rumors circulating on social media that the attack was an attempt to thwart a local drag show.
Fields said investigators “have not been able to connect anything to the drag show,” which was scheduled to take place in the town of Southern Pines at 7 pm Saturday when the power went out.
Duke Energy workers met Sunday to plan how to repair an electrical substation in Carthage, North Carolina. (Credit: Jonathan Drake/Reuters)
Shelters open, schools closed
The county declared a state of emergency to protect residents and property and maintain public services, officials said. The countywide curfew is expected to remain in effect each night while the emergency declaration is in effect.
“It’s going to be very, very dark and it’s going to be cold tonight, and we don’t need to have anyone on the streets and that’s the reason for our curfew,” said North Carolina State Senator Tom McInnis, during the press conference. “Please stay home tonight…the roads are dangerous.”
The emergency order also encourages residents to save fuel.
With the streets dark, the area has seen an increase in emergency calls and vehicle accidents being reported because traffic lights are out, Cameron told Trends Wide.
People who are dependent on oxygen have also made emergency calls, he added.
A shelter has opened at the Moore County Sports Complex and trailers with toilets and showers are being brought in, Moore County Administrator Wayne Vest said.
As for schools, it is unclear how long campuses will remain closed. Moore County Superintendent Tim Locklair said decisions regarding the opening of schools for the remainder of the week will be made on a day-to-day basis.
— Trends Wide’s Aileen Graef, Keith Allen, Nicole Grether and Gloria Pazmino contributed to this report.
