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The Complex 'Military-Style' Raid on California Power Station Spooks U.S.
Financial Post ^ | December 13, 2013 | Shane Harris

Posted on 12/28/2013 2:15:07 PM PST by Daralundy

When U.S. officials warn about "attacks" on electric power facilities these days, the first thing that comes to mind is probably a computer hacker trying to shut the lights off in a city with malware. But a more traditional attack on a power station in California has U.S. officials puzzled and worried about the physical security of the the electrical grid--from attackers who come in with guns blazing.

Around 1:00 AM on April 16, at least one individual (possibly two) entered two different manholes at the PG&E Metcalf power substation, southeast of San Jose, and cut fiber cables in the area around the substation. That knocked out some local 911 services, landline service to the substation, and cell phone service in the area, a senior U.S. intelligence official told Foreign Policy. The intruder(s) then fired more than 100 rounds from what two officials described as a high-powered rifle at several transformers in the facility. Ten transformers were damaged in one area of the facility, and three transformer banks -- or groups of transformers -- were hit in another, according to a PG&E spokesman.

Cooling oil then leaked from a transformer bank, causing the transformers to overheat and shut down. State regulators urged customers in the area to conserve energy over the following days, but there was no long-term damage reported at the facility and there were no major power outages. There were no injuries reported. That was the good news. The bad news is that officials don't know who the shooter(s) were, and most importantly, whether further attacks are planned.

(Excerpt) Read more at complex.foreignpolicy.com ...


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Foreign Affairs; News/Current Events; US: California
KEYWORDS: 201304; 20130416; 201312; domesticterrorism; dressrehearsal; dryrun; ecoterrorism; grid; homelandsecurity; isolatedincidents; militarystyleraid; nationalsecurity; obamalegacy; pge; plannedattack; powergrid; powerstation; powersubstation; sanjose; siliconvalley; substation; terroristattack; transformers; waronterror
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To: editor-surveyor

Are not the sensors generally immersed in the oil — losing oil might result in a delayed sensing of overheating, especially of the part of the transformer that is not in the oil.


41 posted on 12/28/2013 3:02:12 PM PST by HiTech RedNeck (The Lion of Judah will roar again if you give him a big hug and a cheer and mean it. See my page.)
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To: editor-surveyor

Thanks for the info, everyone.
That’s why FR is still the best.


42 posted on 12/28/2013 3:03:06 PM PST by tet68 ( " We would not die in that man's company, that fears his fellowship to die with us...." Henry V.)
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To: MrEdd

There was a blackout along the west coast several decades after someone dynamited a power line tower in Oregon.

Never heard if they caught the guy (or gal)


43 posted on 12/28/2013 3:04:07 PM PST by BenLurkin (This is not a statement of fact. It is either opinion or satire; or both.)
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To: tet68

I’m an electrical engineer by degree and know we have to look at the issues more deeply.


44 posted on 12/28/2013 3:04:08 PM PST by HiTech RedNeck (The Lion of Judah will roar again if you give him a big hug and a cheer and mean it. See my page.)
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To: HiTech RedNeck

Bullet holes in transformers are common.

My younger son used to work in that stuff, and went out often to help bring them back up at strange hours of the night.

We have an abundance of idiots with high powered rifles, always looking for the worst possible targets.

Telephone cables are another old favorite for that crap.


45 posted on 12/28/2013 3:04:17 PM PST by editor-surveyor (Freepers: Not as smart as I'd hoped they'd be)
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To: HiTech RedNeck

The sensors are embedded in the windings.


46 posted on 12/28/2013 3:06:16 PM PST by meatloaf
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To: HiTech RedNeck

The transformer windings are not vulnerable, as they have heavy vessels around them; it is the cooling exchangers that are necessarily made of thin materials.


47 posted on 12/28/2013 3:07:16 PM PST by editor-surveyor (Freepers: Not as smart as I'd hoped they'd be)
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To: meatloaf

Not to sweat it!

The cores of the transformers are encased in thick vessels. Cooling parts can be repaired or replaced.


48 posted on 12/28/2013 3:10:02 PM PST by editor-surveyor (Freepers: Not as smart as I'd hoped they'd be)
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To: meatloaf

That’s some lowboy there!


49 posted on 12/28/2013 3:11:32 PM PST by editor-surveyor (Freepers: Not as smart as I'd hoped they'd be)
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To: Daralundy

Probably some rogue members of NWO teams already in the United States. Think of them as King Barry’s co-workers. Our gubmint acts surprised. It’s all an act.


50 posted on 12/28/2013 3:17:43 PM PST by Obama_Is_Sabotaging_America
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To: Daralundy

Wait a minute, aren’t those transformers shaped like cans? It’s the cans! He doesn’t like cans! Stay away from the cans!


51 posted on 12/28/2013 3:23:35 PM PST by NonValueAdded (It's not the penalty, it's the lack of coverage on 1 Jan. Think about it.)
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To: editor-surveyor

Those rail cars are few and far between. If we had a modern day Carrington event or an EMP attack, they’re another reason the grid would be down much longer than people expect.

The other is there is only one plant in North America that builds the large transformers and it’s in an area where the grid would be affected by a solar flare.


52 posted on 12/28/2013 3:28:22 PM PST by meatloaf
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To: Daralundy

Somebody who got fired got mad.


53 posted on 12/28/2013 3:28:55 PM PST by gaijin
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To: Daralundy
The bad news is that officials don't know who the shooter(s) were, and most importantly, whether further attacks are planned.

Wait a minute here! Aren't we being told that the NSA's massive snooping and vaccuuming up of all telephone/cellphone call records are preventing terrorist acts like this?

Didn't a federal judge just recently tell us that these "programs" are stopping these types of activities?

You mean the judge and the Government lied???!!

54 posted on 12/28/2013 3:41:34 PM PST by usconservative (When The Ballot Box No Longer Counts, The Ammunition Box Does. (What's In Your Ammo Box?))
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To: MrEdd

>> crews trying to erect new towers would be difficult to guard.

Maybe in places like California. In 2A respecting flyover country you could deputize battalions of riflemen / deer hunters to pull overwatch security.


55 posted on 12/28/2013 3:45:49 PM PST by FreedomPoster (Islam delenda est)
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To: Daralundy

Mohammedans. Anyone want to bet against?


56 posted on 12/28/2013 3:48:13 PM PST by arthurus (Read Hazlitt's Economics In One Lesson ONLINEhttp://steshaw.org/economics-in-one-lesson/)
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To: arthurus

You may be right but all of obama stunts ,false flage ops have failed so far it great he is such a failure.


57 posted on 12/28/2013 4:11:13 PM PST by Tigen (I shall raise you one .)
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To: Cobra64

HA! Exactly what I was thinking.


58 posted on 12/28/2013 4:42:00 PM PST by jimjohn
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To: Daralundy
"Jon Wellinghoff, the chairman of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, said last month that an attack by intruders with guns and rifles could be just as devastating as a cyber attack. A shooter "could get 200 yards away with a .22 rifle and take the whole thing out," Wellinghoff said last month at a conference sponsored by Bloomberg.

The idiocy of bureaucrats is hardly more stark. The story is about 100 rounds from a "high powered rifle" fired at close range with muted damage. Then this idiot makes this statement, and thinks we'll believe it.

59 posted on 12/28/2013 4:51:45 PM PST by norwaypinesavage (Galileo: In science, the authority of a thousand is not worth the humble reasoning of one individual)
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To: Daralundy

Did anyone, besides Buckwheat and the 50 IQ surrender monkeys here on FR, really believe that the jokes in Homeland Security would be capable of stopping terrorists or going door-to-door and confiscating our weapons?


60 posted on 12/28/2013 4:53:02 PM PST by sergeantdave
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