Law enforcement officials in North Carolina have applied for search warrants related to Dec. 3 and 4 shooting of electric substations that caused widespread power outages in Moore County, authorities confirmed last week.

The outages began after one or more people drove up to two substations, breached the gates and opened fire on them, authorities have said.

The damage cut power to 45,000 customers as well as schools and a hospital. The lights are back on according Duke Energy. But everyone’s still in the dark as to the identity and intent of the shooters.

It doesn’t appear that this was a random act of vandalism. And the attacks have been linked to equipment shootings at substations in the Pacific Northwest in November.

So, are these coordinated attacks? Who’s doing the attacking? What’s their ultimate aim, to leave North Carolinians shivering without heat and light in 30-degree temperatures? To try and disrupt the power grid on a nationwide level?

And who’s doing the shooting ? Are they right-wing militia types trying to send a message to end drag queen storytimes at local libraries? Foreign terrorists trying to ruin the holidays for the Great Satan? Unbalanced locals with too much time and ammunition on their hands?

One thing’s for sure. The incidents have pointed out the vulnerability of the nation’s power grid. More than 55,000 substations across the United States keep the power flowing and the lights on. Many were built in a more trusting time and are often protected by no more than a chain-link fence and a locked gate.

Unfortunately, as was proven in the Aug. 14, 2003, incident that plunged 50 million people from the Midwest to Ontario into darkness because a power line in Ohio brushed against some overgrown tree limbs, local outages can cause a cascading blackout out across the country.

Two conclusions can be taken from the incident. First, local utilities need to review the security of their own substations and make whatever changes they can to prevent a similar blackout from happening in Butler County.

Second, if the perpetrators are arrested, they should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Long prison sentences and hefty fines would go a long way into deterring any copycats from taking up arms against the national electrical grid.

— EKF