North Carolina power substations taken out by gunfire 16

[FacEngrPE]

https://www.foxnews.com/us/north-carolina-sheriff-says-intentional-vandalism-substations-caused-power-outages-40k-customers[/URL]]A North Carolina sheriff and power company official said "intentional vandalism" at substations has caused outages for about 40,000 customers expected to last longer than 24 hours

NC county announces curfew as nearly 40,000 customers remain without power after 2 substations damaged by gunfire; Tina Burnside, By Nicole Grether, Gloria Pazmino and Tina Burnside, CNN Updated 6:12 PM EST, Sun December 4, 2022

Current outages link

https://www.readync.gov/stay-informed/power-outages

and

https://outagemaps.duke-energy.com/#/current-outages/ncsc

Moore County Sheriff's Office Dec 4

 

[phamENG]

Nothing points to an 'inside job'. Give me 2 days and I could probably watch enough youtube videos and look at enough maps to be able to figure out the most important parts of a substation AND determine how areas are fed (substations and high-voltage lines are pretty easy to spot on google maps). Somebody with no electrical training could probably figure it out in 3 or 4 if their only goal was to take it down.

Could it be an inside job? Sure. But knowing how a system on public display and openly discussed is laid out is not a 'smoking gun' if I can use such an on-the-nose metaphor here.

 

[EdStainless]

Utilities have been working to add protection to large stations, but there are tens of thousands of these small subs around the country that have no more than a fence.

= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
P.E. Metallurgy, consulting work welcomed

 

[dik]

That's part of the problem... but imagine what could happen if someone really knew what they were doing.

-----*****-----
So strange to see the singularity approaching while the entire planet is rapidly turning into a hellscape. -John Coates

-Dik

 

[phamENG]

That's part of the problem... but imagine what could happen if someone really knew what they were doing.

Yeah, really. Let's just hope a civil engineer never decides to run a terrorist organization! Oh...wait...

 

[dik]

...maybe pays better?

-----*****-----
So strange to see the singularity approaching while the entire planet is rapidly turning into a hellscape. -John Coates

-Dik

 

[hpaircraft]

What kind of engineering failure is this?

 

[djs]

About 15 years ago, I installed an RTU at a dam on a water reservoir. This dam was located inside a large forested area. Took about 30 minutes driving on dirt roads to get to it. A couple weeks later, we received report that someone had shot at the RTU but did not penetrate the enclosure (316 SS). They did however destroy the solar panel with a rock. A month later, they returned with a 5.56 AR rifle. They not only shot up the RTU, but also shot up the pumping station that supplied water for the County. This included a pad mounted transformer, which started to leak oil into the water supply. The County had backhoes out the next day removing all of the contaminated soil.

BTW while they shot up the enclosure, they missed all of the electronics inside. Just the loss of the enclosure and some terminal blocks.

 

[RedSnake]

What kind of engineering failure is this?

Failure to protect from predictable misuse of firearms.

“Logic will get you from A to Z; imagination will get you everywhere.“
Albert Einstein

 

[phamENG]

What kind of engineering failure is this?

Security. There is a whole field that has formed around physical security engineering. It's largely in government - I had to incorporate it into many of my structural designs for government facilities. But a lot of tech firms have started implementing the roll. Do a search online and you'll find listings for data centers, nuclear facilities, etc. The point is to introduce engineering controls to safeguard infrastructure.

 

[TugboatEng]

People don't typically shoot at structures with a roof on them. Put as much as you can inside building. A control box in the open may as well have a target on it. Mount it on a pole and it's even more tempting.

 

[1503-44]

https://www.cisa.gov/infrastructure-security-division

https://www.cisa.gov/critical-infrastructure-sectors

https://www.cisa.gov/energy-sector

https://www.cisa.gov/sites/default/files/publications/nipp-ssp-energy-2015-508.pdf

Einstein gave the same test to students every year. When asked why he would do something like that, "Because the answers had changed."

 

[enginesrus]

Sorta like food plants burning awhile back, oil tankers running aground many years ago, millions of chickens put down, and cattle the same, refinery's going up in smoke, and fertilizer plants too . Yeah just makes one wonder.
I just bet its a bit rough charging EV's during all this?

 

[jhardy1]

I wonder how easy it is to get petrol (gas) from a pump without electricity supply?

http://julianh72.blogspot.com

 

[MintJulep]

Davidbeach asked:

Where did I speculate?

Right here:

This isn't what happened in the San Jose area 8 years ago; that was an inside job but the recent shite isn't.

 

[JohnRBaker]

The Feds are now involved in this:

FBI investigates deliberate attacks on N.C. power substations

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/f...e-attacks-on-nc-power-substations/ar-AA14VwX3

John R. Baker, P.E. (ret)
Irvine, CA
Siemens PLM:
UG/NX Museum:

The secret of life is not finding someone to live with
It's finding someone you can't live without

 

[FacEngrPE]

The local paper in Moore County published this detailed timeline of events.
All-Out Effort Underway to Investigate Power Station Attack 'Violence and Sabotage Will Not Be Tolerated' Staff Report, Dec 5, 2022

The following quote reveals the extent of the restoration effort.

The company said it is building new lines to help those affected by the outage. But as it does so and more customers come back online, "the overall electric load increases. The back feeding system REMC is building can provide power for intervals of time but not continuously."

Crews on Monday were erecting poles to cover almost three miles of territory.

 

[davidbeach]

Gee, I thought it was going to be the suggestion that 2014 was an inside job that was going to get push back.

I’ll see your silver lining and raise you two black clouds. - Protection Operations

 

[TugboatEng]

I would assume the FBI would get involved. Local police departments don't typically have the resources or knowledge to pursue these types of investigations. FBI involvement doesn't imply there is a greater conspiracy. Lots of spicy words in these headlines.

 

[davidbeach]

So, did the FBI open a new investigation or just add this as one more thing for an ongoing task force to examine?

I’ll see your silver lining and raise you two black clouds. - Protection Operations

 

[TugboatEng]

I would assume it's a new investigation. Transformer shootings are relatively infrequent and separate events aren't usually connected.