Power restored to Moore County as a substation shooting is investigated in SC | Eastern NC Now

    Publisher's Note: This post appears here courtesy of the Carolina Journal. The author of this post is CJ Staff.

    Duke Energy announced Thursday that crews have restored power to all customers in Moore County and the surrounding counties affected by an attack on Saturday on two major substations. This comes as the Federal Bureau of Investigation responds to another possible shooting on a substation in South Carolina is reported.

    Kershaw County Sheriff Lee Boan on Wednesday told a local news outlet that Duke Energy employees witnessed an individual open fire near trees lining Wateree Hydro Station in Ridgeway, South Carolina.

    "We are aware of reports of gunfire near the Wateree Hydro Station in Ridgeway, SC," Duke Energy said in a statement released Wednesday night. "No individuals were harmed. There are no outages reported. There is no known property damage at this time. We are working closely with the FBI on this issue."

    Back in Moore County, N.C. a state of emergency is due to expire at 5 pm Thursday, according to the Moore County Sheriff's office, which continues to investigate the attacks along with the FBI, SBI, and other state and local agencies. Schools were closed in Moore County during the outage and the local school system is expected to announce whether they will reopen on Friday.

    Crews worked 24-hour shifts, pursuing multiple repair paths and replacing several large and vital pieces of equipment to restore service.

    "We are pleased to complete this work for the citizens of Moore County and surrounding counties a full day ahead of what we initially estimated," said Jason Hollifield, Duke Energy's general manager, Emergency Preparedness. "The complexity of repairs required was extensive, and we appreciate our customers' patience and understanding during a situation we know has been challenging for them, their families and the community as a whole."

    Approximately 45,000 homes and businesses were initially affected when two substations in the county were attacked and vandalized with firearms on Saturday. The state of North Carolina, Moore County and Duke Energy are offering up to $75,000 for information leading to an arrest and conviction in the attacks on the Moore County substations. Each organization is offering rewards of up to $25,000.

    The MCSO tip line is 910-947-4444.