Another power substation in North Carolina is damaged by apparent gunfire, weeks after attacks on the grid left thousands without power

Another power substation in North Carolina was damaged by an apparent shooting, energy officials said Tuesday. The damage occurred on a electrical substation in Thomasville, about an hour’s drive from Moore County, where two other substations were gunned down just weeks ago.

EnergyUnited said that company officials learned of an “equipment issue” at the Pleasant Hill substation Tuesday morning, at which time crews were dispatched to assess the situation. They found that the transformer had been damaged “apparently by a firearm” and reported it to law enforcement.

No customers receiving power from the substation experienced an outage, the company said.

The Randolph County Sheriff’s Office said Tuesday that police responded to a “vandalism call” at the substation and that investigators responded to the scene. The FBI and State Bureau of Investigation were also notified, police said.

“Investigators recovered evidence from the scene and canvassed surrounding areas to gather additional information,” the sheriff’s office said. “Based on the information gathered, investigators believe that the incident happened around 3:00 am. The investigation is ongoing.”

Steve McCachern, EnergyUnited’s vice president of energy supply, said in a statement that the company is “committed to delivering safe and reliable energy to our members.”

“While we are pleased that our members did not experience any service interruptions, we take this matter very seriously and are currently investigating the incident,” said McCachern.

The damage to the substation happened a few weeks later two more electrical substations the state was hit by the shooting, leaving at least 40,000 people without power. Those stations, owned by Duke Energy, were located in neighboring Moore County, according to the county sheriff.

“This was no accident,” Moore County Sheriff Ronnie Fields said of the Dec. 3 incidents. In an update posted on Facebook on Dec. 28, the sheriff said the office had received “numerous tips” and that there $75,000 reward for information that could lead to an arrest.

Lee Cohen

Lee Cohen is a social media producer and popular reporter for CBS News who focuses on social justice issues.