Three Power Substations Attacked In Washington State On Christmas Day

Increased sabotage incidents on the US power grid are very concerning. On Christmas Day, three substation facilities were vandalized in Pierce County, Washington, plunging thousands of customers into total darkness, according to ABC News. 

Two of the power substations were operated by Tacoma Public Utilities and one by Puget Sound Energy. The Pierce County Sheriff’s Department said all three were attacked, but there are no “motives or if this was a coordinated attack on the power systems.” 

The sheriff’s office said nothing was stolen from the substations, while equipment was only vandalized. There was no mention of what devices were damaged or the tool to inflict damage. 

“Unfortunately, the impacts to our system from today’s deliberate damage are more severe in some places than initial testing indicated. Some customers will be restored closer to 8 AM tomorrow,” Tacoma Public Utilities wrote in a statement on Sunday.

The Tacoma substation attacks follow “deliberate attacks” on two power substations in North Carolina early this month. Duke Energy personnel found bullet holes in transformers. 

We’ve asked the question of who is intentionally sabotaging the US power grid. In the first eight months of the year, there were 106 attacks on the electrical grid, the highest number ever recorded in a single year.