4th Washington state electrical substation vandalized

Tacoma, Washington (AP) — Fourth substation destroyed late Christmas night The state of Washington temporarily cut power to the Kapousin and Graham residences, according to the Pierce County Sheriff’s Office.

By 7 a.m. Monday, more than 10,500 Puget Sound Energy customers were without power throughout the area. KOMO TV report.

The suspect entered the fenced area, destroyed equipment and started a fire.

The attack came after a massive power outage in North Carolina after federal officials warned that the U.S. power grid needed to be more secure to prevent domestic terrorism. Earlier this month, the repair took a few days.

According to Tacoma Public Utilities, the first substation was destroyed around 5:30 a.m. Sunday, followed by the second substation. The outage affected approximately 7,300 customers in the southeast area of ​​Tacoma. Just before noon, the power company said power was restored to all but 2,700 customers, who were estimated to have had power restored around 6:30 p.m. on Sunday.

Meanwhile, shortly before noon, Puget Sound Energy reported that vandalism that occurred around 2:30 am on Sunday caused a power outage at one of its substations. About 7,700 customers who lost power were restored by 5 a.m., said Puget Sound spokesman Andrew Padula. Padula said the company is investigating with authorities and declined to comment further.

In all four cases, someone forced their way into the fenced area surrounding the substation, damaging equipment and causing power outages, according to the sheriff’s office.

Power plants in Washington and Oregon were damaged last month.

Portland General Electric, Bonneville Power Authority, Cowlitz County Utility District and Puget Sound Energy have confirmed six separate attacks on substations in Washington and Oregon, according to Oregon Public Broadcasting in Seattle and KUOW-FM. ..