North Carolina electric grid gunman knew how to disable stations: sheriff
Federal, state, and local agencies are investigating the shooting
The person who orchestrated the shooting on North Carolina power stations, leaving nearly an entire county without electricity for a second straight day, "knew exactly" how to disable the stations, Moore County Sheriff Ronnie Fields said Monday.
North Carolina Democrat Gov. Roy Cooper warned of a "new level of threat" posed by Saturday's gunfire and pushed for the hardening of critical infrastructure.
"Protecting critical infrastructure like our power system must be a top priority," Cooper said in a press briefing on Monday. "These kinds of things cannot happen."
When pressed by a reporter on whether the incident was being investigated as an act of domestic terrorism, Cooper said that "investigators are leaving no stone unturned."
Duke Energy workers inspect what they said was one of three bullet holes that crippled an electrical substation after the Moore County Sheriff said that vandalism caused a mass power outage. (Reuters / Fox News)
Tuesday will mark the second day Moore County schools will be closed. About 38,000 households were still without power as the community suffers from freezing nighttime temperatures.
Utility workers investigating the power outages discovered broken gates and gunfire damage to equipment at two substations in the county.
Officials have not released many details regarding the investigation, only saying that the damage was from firearms. But Fields suggested Monday that whoever orchestrated the attacks knew how to disable the substations.
The responsible party "knew exactly what they were doing to cause the damage and cause the outage that they did," Fields said.
Gov. Roy Cooper speaks during a briefing on North Carolina's coronavirus pandemic response Tuesday, Dec.22, 2020, at the N.C. Emergency Operations Center in Raleigh, N.C. (Travis Long/The News & Observer via AP) (AP Images / Fox News)
The FBI, the U.S. Department of Energy and other federal agencies are assisting local and state law enforcement in the investigation. No motive or arrests have been revealed thus far.
"Early evidence suggests that it was deliberate and the investigation is underway," Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said in a briefing.
Duke Energy, which provides power to the area, said it had restored electricity to about 7,000 customers by Monday afternoon, spokesperson Jeff Brooks said at a press briefing on Monday.
A total of 45,000 had lost power after the shootings, which is nearly everyone in Moore County who the company serves.
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Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas speaks during a news conference at The National Press Club in Washington, on Thursday, Sept. 9, 2021. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana) (AP Images / AP Images)
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Brooks said power would likely be out through Wednesday or Thursday for most customers because the damage to the two substations was severe, and requires complicated parts and repairs.
Duke Energy’s general manager of emergency preparedness, Jason Hollifield, said in a statement Monday that the company is "restoring customers where possible, but the damage is beyond repair in some areas. That leaves us with no option but to replace large pieces of equipment – which is not an easy or quick task."
Reuters contributed to this report.