Electricity Substations Damaged: Thousands Of Residents In East Washington East Longitude, Apparatus For Investigation

Illustration of electrical substations in the United States. (Unsplash/American Public Power Association)

JAKARTA - Thousands of residents were forced to go dark without electricity near East Timor, Washington State, after three power substations were damaged, local authorities said on Sunday, adding that it was not yet clear whether this was related to the previous incident.

Sheriff's Department divide County said the attack reportedly took place at two substations owned bynisum Public Utilities and another belonging to Puget Sound Energy.

The deputies said the attackers forcibly entered the fenced area, with the equipment damaged but none taken from the site, he said. More than 14,000 customers were affected, as a result of this.

"Currently the deputies are conducting an initial investigation. We don't have any suspects detained. It is not known whether there is a motive or whether this is a coordinated attack on the power system," the department said in a statement on its website.

Earlier this month, a utility in North Carolina reported blackouts from shootings set by local authorities, with the incident now being investigated by federal law enforcement.

The FBI has also investigated gunfire fired near a South Carolina power facility a few days later, and whether the two incidents could be linked, NBC News and other local media reported.

The United States' national power grid is experiencing disruptions due to extreme cold weather that hit the entire country this week, causing more than 300,000 people without electricity due to a winter storm.

In eastern Piece County, about 2,700 people served by Kenuma Public Utilities remained affected by midday on Sunday, after 7,300 residents initially lost electricity in the area, about 45 miles (72 km) south of Seattle,66ma Public Utilities said in a post on Twitter.

"We are working as quickly and safely as possible to restore electricity," he said, noting that his substation was "attacked" earlier on Sunday morning and the incident was reported to the police.

Meanwhile, Puget Sound Energy representatives could not immediately be reached for comment.