Curfew enacted in North Carolina after gunfire leaves 45,000 without power

Jenny Goldsberry

December 04, 07:27 PM December 04, 07:27 PM

A gunfire attack on two power stations in North Carolina Saturday night resulted in 45,000 losing power and a mandated curfew across an entire county.

Moore County Sheriff Ronnie Fields announced the evening curfew from 7:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m. in an attempt to protect citizens affected by the power outage which has affected traffic lights. Both stations affected were part of the Duke Energy network and were vandalized on top of taking on gunfire. Its crews are working 24-hour shifts to restore power to affected citizens.

"Duke Energy is pursuing multiple repair paths to restore as many customers as possible, as quickly and safely as possible, " Duke Energy's Emergency Preparedness general manager Jason Hollifield said in a statement. "While some customers will be restored sooner, most customers should be prepared for an extended outage that could last until Thursday.”

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Moore County Schools announced Sunday that all schools were canceling class Monday. It remains to be seen if schools will be able to reopen by Tuesday. Carthage's Moore County Sports Complex is currently in use as a shelter, according to Fields.

"An attack like this on critical infrastructure is a serious, intentional crime and I expect state and federal authorities to thoroughly investigate and bring those responsible to justice," Gov. Roy Cooper tweeted Sunday. While no suspects have been arrested, there have been unconfirmed reports that the vandals were attempting to disrupt a drag show that included a story hour.

"We've not been able to link anything to the drag show," Fields clarified in a press conference Sunday. "Anything is possible."

North Carolina's property crime, including burglary, theft, and arson, was on the decline in 2021, with over 3,000 arrests made for vandalism statewide, roughly 100 fewer than the previous year.