Powerless n. Carolina still in darkness after weekend shootings

North Carolina County still in darkness after attack on power substations Vandalism suspected in mass power outage in North Carolina.

Hundreds of households and businesses in North Carolina remained without power for a third day on Tuesday as authorities investigate what they describe as an orchestrated gunfire attack that disabled two substations.

After the attack, North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper said that a serious national conversation about protecting critical infrastructure is needed.

More than 35,000 customers were without power on Tuesday morning in Moore County, where the FBI and the US Department of Energy along with local and state law enforcement agencies were investigating Saturday's shootings at the substations.

Cooper told CNN that investigators were not leaving a stone unturned. This was a malicious attack on the entire community that plunged tens of thousands of people into darkness. This is unacceptable to have so many people without power for this long, Cooper said. It was clear that they knew how to cause significant damage and that they could do it at this substation, so we have to assess the situation. Schools across the county of 100,000 people canceled classes on Tuesday for a second day, while a curfew was in place overnight amid freezing nighttime temperatures.

On Saturday night, utility workers investigating reports of widespread outages found gates broken and evidence of gunfire damage to equipment at two substations in the county. The area is popular with tourists and is known for its golf resorts, including Pinehurst, which has hosted the U.S. Open and Ryder Cup tournaments.

Authorities are releasing few details of the investigation, saying only that the damage was done by firearms. Sheriff Ronnie Fields said on Monday that whoever orchestrated the attacks knew how to take out the substations.

Duke Energy said on Monday that it had restored electricity to around 7,000 customers from a total of 45,000 who had lost power after the shootings. That represented nearly all customers served by the company in Moore County, a company spokeswoman Jeff Brooks said on Monday.

The damage to the substations was extensive and requires complicated parts and repairs, so for most customers, power would likely be out by Wednesday or Thursday.