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Friends,
Six months ago, our community was attacked.
Two substations in Moore County were intentionally attacked on the evening of December 3rd, leaving my house and 45,000 of our neighbors without power for up to ten days.
In the aftermath of the attack, hospitals were impacted threatening medical treatments, schools were shut down, businesses were affected, stop lights were dark, gas stations were closed, cell signals were impacted, and water couldn’t be heated.
An attack like this could have devastated our community and we didn’t go without our struggles. But overall, I am so proud of our resilient response. In the days that followed, you truly showed the best of Moore County and the best of America.
Throughout our region, churches, small businesses, restaurants, local governments, police and fire departments, and individuals stepped up to help their neighbors and showed the true strength of our community. It was inspiring to see everyone come together in our time of need.
I also thank Sheriff Ronnie Fields and our local law enforcement for their quick response during those dark days and for their ongoing investigations to determine who is responsible for December’s attack. We must hold those responsible for this act accountable and I will continue to support law enforcement as they conduct their investigation.
Since the attack occurred, I have been in listening mode. I have heard from constituents, grid operators, community developers, the FBI and law enforcement, and business owners who have concerns with our grid’s security and resilience—all against the backdrop of historic energy costs.
As your neighbor, I share these concerns with you. And a similar, yet thankfully unsuccessful, attack in Randolph County several months ago underscores the need to address this issue. That’s why last week, I brought my colleagues from Congress to Moore County for a House Energy and Commerce Committee field hearing. I took my colleagues to the site of one of the attacks so they could understand the substation involved. And I introduced them to the community and people who were impacted by the attack. Just as I promised to you back in December, I brought Washington here and put real faces to the issues that rocked our community.
Before the hearing, we stopped at the Duke Energy West End substation, one of the two substations here in Moore County that was intentionally attacked. At the field hearing, experts from Duke Energy, NC Emergency Management, NC State University, and in energy security shared their testimony on the current state of our grid security and resilience and how we move forward from these attacks. There are 45,000 stories of why Moore County—and our nation—needs greater grid resilience, and my colleagues and I welcome these testimonies and your feedback in order to help do our jobs effectively.
This field hearing was the first of many our committee will hold in our efforts to improve the security and resiliency of our nation's energy grid. It was important to me that the first hearing be here where the attack happened, and this is only the beginning of our investigations.
Being your voice in Congress is a responsibility I take extremely seriously and I will continue to make sure Washington pays attention to the concerns and needs of you and your family.
It’s an honor to represent you and the best of our community— which always shines bright, even in the dark.
Until Next Time,
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