GREENSBORO, N.C. — Tens of thousands of people in North Carolina are without power, going on almost 48 hours with the lights off. Investigators say someone rammed their way through the gates at two power substations and started shooting, damaging vital equipment.
It's happened before
This is exactly the kind of vicious attack on our power grid that we have been warning about for years now. In fact, 2 Wants To Know’s first story on the power grid was almost a decade ago after similar damage was done to another substation. Back in 2013, we first showed you surveillance video showing the flashes of light created when more than 100 rounds were fired at Pacific Gas and Electric substation transformers.
The attackers in that incident also cut six fiber optic cables - racking up more than $15 million in damage. They were never caught. Power wasn't lost but industry experts say the sophistication and scale were unlike anything they'd seen.
"This event caused us and the entire industry to take a new and closer look at our critical facilities and what we can do to protect them,” said Ken Wells, Director of Substation Security for PG&E.
Ramping up security around transformers
After the attack, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission directed the industry to write new rules for physical security as transformers and other critical equipment often sit in plain view, protected by just a chain-link fence and a few security cameras.
Since that time, there have been almost 700 physical attacks on power plants across the United States, according to an energy grid watchdog who runs the website Grid Security Now!
Government and Duke Energy working on solutions
The government is well aware of these problems. In fact, the Government Accountability Office has issued several audits laying out in detail the weaknesses in the power grid and making recommendations to secure our power supply. The biggest of those reports came out in 2019. As of October 2022, the GAO says "these recommendations have not been implemented yet, leaving the grid vulnerable."
While the government is still working on solutions, Duke Energy says they have security around the substations and plans in place.
“We understand that we're critical infrastructure, so we do incorporate multiple layers of security at all our facilities and across our system,” said Duke Energy spokesperson Jeff Brooks.
The impact of a power grid knockout
A report by counter-terrorism experts in the Federal government says if a terrorist knocked out just nine of the right power substations across the country, power could go out across the entire nation from coast to coast. We're talking a total blackout that might last for days. It could be crippling to our economy and life-threatening.
To help stop that from happening, President Joe Biden's infrastructure bill passed into law this year has money to upgrade the transmission lines. That helps protect against physical attacks. But it does not address the potentially bigger threat of cyber-attacks. The White House has said they are working with utility companies to strengthen cyber security.