© 2025 Connecticut Public

FCC Public Inspection Files:
WEDH · WEDN · WEDW · WEDY
WEDW-FM · WNPR · WPKT · WRLI-FM
Public Files Contact · ATSC 3.0 FAQ
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Thousands in Moore County, N.C., still lack power after an attack damaged substations

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

Whoever opened fire on the power grid in North Carolina last weekend drove some people out of their homes. Nick de la Canal of our member station WFAE met some of them.

NICK DE LA CANAL, BYLINE: A conference room at the Southern Pines Police Department has become a makeshift shelter here. Gail Clark says it's better than her house.

GAIL CLARK: You can't cook. You can't turn on your TV. You can't turn on a light. I don't want to take a shower because it's freezing cold in my house.

DE LA CANAL: Families at the shelter huddle around wall outlets, charging electronic as they warm themselves. Clark is the self-appointed caretaker.

CLARK: I brought some crackers and jelly and coffee cake. And I have cocoa.

DE LA CANAL: She said she considers herself lucky compared to others in the county.

CLARK: We had people here last night who were charging some kind of battery packs for their sister, who's on some kind of heart-lung machine at home and isn't going to survive without power.

DE LA CANAL: Traffic lights remain dark across the county. Most gas stations are shut down. The local hospital is running on generators. At a news conference, Governor Roy Cooper said federal and state investigators are determined to uncover who carried out the attack.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

ROY COOPER: Regardless of motive, violence and sabotage will not be tolerated.

DE LA CANAL: A spokesman for the local utility company said most residents will have to wait until Wednesday or Thursday for power to be restored. For some, that could mean dangerously low temperatures ahead. Sedarius Quick (ph) doesn't want to spend another freezing night at home with his 1-year-old son.

SEDARIUS QUICK: Last night, it kind of broke me because he got below temperature, below freezing. And I can't have my son out in the cold.

DE LA CANAL: Many people left the county to stay with family, friends or at hotels. But he and his son hitched a ride to a different shelter. He's trying to buy a generator if he can find one.

QUICK: I'm hoping that works out.

DE LA CANAL: Yeah.

QUICK: That's what I'm hoping on.

DE LA CANAL: If all else fails, says Quick, they're back to the shelter.

For NPR News, I'm Nick de la Canal in Southern Pines, N.C. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.

The independent journalism and non-commercial programming you rely on every day is in danger.

If you’re reading this, you believe in trusted journalism and in learning without paywalls. You value access to educational content kids love and enriching cultural programming.

Now all of that is at risk.

Federal funding for public media is under threat and if it goes, the impact to our communities will be devastating.

Together, we can defend it. It’s time to protect what matters.

Your voice has protected public media before. Now, it’s needed again. Learn how you can protect the news and programming you depend on.

SOMOS CONNECTICUT is an initiative from Connecticut Public, the state’s local NPR and PBS station, to elevate Latino stories and expand programming that uplifts and informs our Latino communities. Visit CTPublic.org/latino for more stories and resources. For updates, sign up for the SOMOS CONNECTICUT newsletter at ctpublic.org/newsletters.

SOMOS CONNECTICUT es una iniciativa de Connecticut Public, la emisora local de NPR y PBS del estado, que busca elevar nuestras historias latinas y expandir programación que alza y informa nuestras comunidades latinas locales. Visita CTPublic.org/latino para más reportajes y recursos. Para noticias, suscríbase a nuestro boletín informativo en ctpublic.org/newsletters.

The independent journalism and non-commercial programming you rely on every day is in danger.

If you’re reading this, you believe in trusted journalism and in learning without paywalls. You value access to educational content kids love and enriching cultural programming.

Now all of that is at risk.

Federal funding for public media is under threat and if it goes, the impact to our communities will be devastating.

Together, we can defend it. It’s time to protect what matters.

Your voice has protected public media before. Now, it’s needed again. Learn how you can protect the news and programming you depend on.