2013 Metcalf sniper attack

Electrical substation attack in California, US October 2025 October 2025 PGE Metcalf Substation Surveillance Video, April 2013.webm A grainy black-and-white video, taken at night, shows a few muzzle flashes from outside of a chain-link fence. CCTV footage (attacks begin around 1:54) Coyote, California, US PG&E Metcalf Transmission Substation 37.2205 N 121.7439 W source:wikidata title,inline 2013 04 16 12:58 1:50 a.m. PDT Sabotage PG&E, AT&T 7.62×39mm rifles On April 16, 2013, an attack was carried out on Pacific Gas and Electric Company's Metcalf transmission substation in Coyote, California, near the border of San Jose. The attack, in which gunmen fired on 17 electrical transformers, resulted in more than $15 million worth of equipment damage, but it had little impact on the station's electrical power supply.Koerth-Baker Maggie August 13, 2018 https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/hacking-the-electric-grid-is-damned-hard/ Hacking the Electric Grid Is Damned Hard FiveThirtyEight August 13, 2018 https://web.archive.org/web/20180813144055/https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/hacking-the-electric-grid-is-damned-hard/ dead August 13, 2018 https://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2014/02/05/272015606/sniper-attack-on-calif-power-station-raises-terrorism-fears Sniper Attack On Calif. Power Station Raises Terrorism Fears NPR February 5, 2014 April 3, 2018 May 10, 2015 https://web.archive.org/web/20150510025125/http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2014/02/05/272015606/sniper-attack-on-calif-power-station-raises-terrorism-fears live https://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-grid-attack-20140211-story.html#page=1 Sophisticated but low-tech power grid attack baffles authorities Serrano Richard February 11, 2014 January 9, 2018 https://web.archive.org/web/20140507030414/http://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-grid-attack-20140211-story.html May 7, 2014 live Los Angeles Times Halper Evan Precursor publications In 2012, the National Research Council of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine published a declassified report prepared in 2007 for the United States Department of Homeland Security that highlighted the vulnerability of the national electric grid from damage to high voltage transformers.http://www8.nationalacademies.org/onpinews/newsitem.aspx?RecordID=12050 Terrorism and the Electric Power Delivery System National Research Council November 14, 2014 January 25, 2016 January 31, 2016 https://web.archive.org/web/20160131105207/http://www8.nationalacademies.org/onpinews/newsitem.aspx?RecordID=12050 live Assault On the morning of April 16, 2013, a team of riflemen opened fire on the Metcalf Transmission Substation, severely damaging 17 transformers.https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2014/02/snipers-coordinated-an-attack-on-the-power-grid-but-why/283620/ Snipers Coordinated an Attack on the Power Grid, but Why? The Atlantic February 5, 2014 March 10, 2017 March 15, 2017 https://web.archive.org/web/20170315111117/https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2014/02/snipers-coordinated-an-attack-on-the-power-grid-but-why/283620/ live https://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-07-08/u-s-power-grid-vulnerable-to-attack-congressional-research-service.html U.S. Power Grid Vulnerable to Attack: Congressional Research Service Bloomberg July 8, 2014 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20140713111008/http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-07-08/u-s-power-grid-vulnerable-to-attack-congressional-research-service.html July 13, 2014 http://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2014/04/10/pge-offers-250000-reward-in-san-jose-substation-attack/ PG&E Offers $250,000 Reward in San Jose Substation Attack CBS San Francisco April 10, 2014 May 29, 2014 May 18, 2014 https://web.archive.org/web/20140518045052/http://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2014/04/10/pge-offers-250000-reward-in-san-jose-substation-attack/ live Preparation Prior to the attack, a series of fiber-optic telecommunications cables operated by AT&T were cut by the culprits. Additionally, following the attack, investigators found small piles of rocks near to where the shots had been fired, the type of formations that can be used to scout firing positions.https://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304851104579359141941621778 Assault on California Power Station Raises Alarm on Potential for Terrorism The Wall Street Journal February 5, 2014 March 14, 2017 October 26, 2014 https://web.archive.org/web/20141026192608/http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304851104579359141941621778 live http://complex.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2013/12/24/power-station-military-assault 'Military-Style' Raid on California Power Station Spooks U.S. Foreign Policy December 27, 2013 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20140705042615/http://complex.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2013/12/24/power-station-military-assault July 5, 2014 Timeline 12:58 a.m. – AT&T fiber-optic telecommunications cables were cut not far from U.S. Route 101 just outside south San Jose. 1:07 a.m. – Some customers of Level 3 Communications, an Internet service provider, lost service. Cables in its vault near the Metcalf substation were also cut. 1:31 a.m. – A surveillance camera pointed along a chain-link fence around the substation recorded a streak of light that investigators from the Santa Clara County Sheriff's office think was a signal from a waved flashlight. It was followed by the muzzle flash of rifles and sparks from bullets hitting the fence. 1:37 a.m. – PG&E received an alarm from motion sensors at the substation, possibly from bullets grazing the fence. 1:41 a.m. – Santa Clara County Sheriff's department received a 911 call about gunfire, sent by an engineer at a nearby power plant that still had phone service. 1:45 a.m. – The first bank of transformers, riddled with bullet holes and having leaked 52000 USgal of oil, overheated, whereupon PG&E's control center about 90 mi north received an equipment-failure alarm. 1:50 a.m. – Another apparent flashlight signal, caught on film, marked the end of the attack. More than 100 expended 7.62×39mm cases were later found at the site. 1:51 a.m. – Law-enforcement officers arrived, but found everything quiet. Unable to get past the locked fence and seeing nothing suspicious, they left. 3:15 a.m. – A PG&E worker arrived to survey the damage. Sophistication of attack Former Chairman of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Jon Wellinghoff stated that military experts informed him that the assault looked like a "professional job", noting that no fingerprints were discovered on the empty casings. While Wellinghoff described the attack as "the most significant incident of domestic terrorism involving the grid that has ever occurred", a spokesman for the Federal Bureau of Investigation stated that they did not believe a terrorist organization was responsible.https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2014/02/05/272015606/sniper-attack-on-calif-power-station-raises-terrorism-fears Sniper Attack On Calif. Power Station Raises Terrorism Fears NPR June 4, 2021 August 1, 2020 August 6, 2020 https://web.archive.org/web/20200806142338/https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2014/02/05/272015606/sniper-attack-on-calif-power-station-raises-terrorism-fears live Henry Waxman, a ranking member of the United States House Committee on Energy and Commerce, stated that the attack was "an unprecedented and sophisticated attack on an electric grid substation with military-style weapons. Communications were disrupted. The attack inflicted substantial damage. It took weeks to replace the damaged parts. Under slightly different conditions, there could have been serious power outages or worse." Aftermath Seventeen transformers were seriously damaged, requiring over $15 million worth of repairs. To avert a black-out, energy grid officials had to reroute power from nearby Silicon Valley-based power plants.http://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/SB-699-Following-Attack-on-PGE-Substation-Bill-Would-Require-California-Utilities-to-Beef-Up-Security--249321341.html Following Attack on PG&E Substation, Bill Requires California Utilities to Beef Up Security NBC Bay Area March 10, 2014 May 29, 2014 May 29, 2014 https://web.archive.org/web/20140529185921/http://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/SB-699-Following-Attack-on-PGE-Substation-Bill-Would-Require-California-Utilities-to-Beef-Up-Security--249321341.html live While some nearby neighborhoods temporarily lost power, 'the big users weren't even aware Metcalf had happened", according to an expert from the Electric Power Research Institute. Both PG&E, the company which operated the transformers, and AT&T offered $250,000 rewards for any information leading to the arrest and conviction of the perpetrators of the attack.http://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2013/04/17/250000-reward-offered-in-vandalism-of-san-jose-att-wires/ $250,000 Reward Offered in Vandalism of San Jose AT&T Wires CBS SF Bay Area April 17, 2013 May 29, 2014 May 29, 2014 https://web.archive.org/web/20140529184210/http://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2013/04/17/250000-reward-offered-in-vandalism-of-san-jose-att-wires/ live In June 2014, PG&E announced that it intended to spend $100 million over a three-year span on upgrading security at substations throughout its territory, including the Metcalf location.http://www.mercurynews.com/business/ci_25988091/pg-e-expects-begin-metcalf-substation-security-upgrades PG&E upgrading substation security after San Jose sniper attack San Jose Mercury News June 18, 2014 July 17, 2014 July 25, 2014 https://web.archive.org/web/20140725171652/http://www.mercurynews.com/business/ci_25988091/pg-e-expects-begin-metcalf-substation-security-upgrades live A July 2014 report from the Congressional Research Service titled Physical Security of the U.S. Power Grid: High-Voltage Transformer Substations repeatedly cited the attack and noted that, "... in the wake of the Metcalf incident, the FERC has ordered the imposition of mandatory physical security standards (for substations) in 2014."http://fas.org/sgp/crs/homesec/R43604.pdf Physical Security of the U.S. Power Grid: High-Voltage Transformer Substations Congressional Research Service June 17, 2014 July 17, 2014 July 25, 2014 https://web.archive.org/web/20140725174156/http://fas.org/sgp/crs/homesec/R43604.pdf live https://thehill.com/special-reports/cybersecurity-october-8-2014/220088-keeping-the-electric-grid-safe-from-attack/ Keeping the electric grid safe from attack The Hill October 8, 2014 October 18, 2014 October 11, 2014 https://web.archive.org/web/20141011231559/http://thehill.com/special-reports/cybersecurity-october-8-2014/220088-keeping-the-electric-grid-safe-from-attack live Investigation In October 2015, it was reported that the Department of Homeland Security had found indications that the attack may have been committed by "an insider".https://money.cnn.com/2015/10/16/technology/sniper-power-grid/ Sniper attack on California power grid may have been 'an insider,' DHS says CNN Money October 17, 2015 August 3, 2020 August 29, 2020 https://web.archive.org/web/20200829203557/https://money.cnn.com/2015/10/16/technology/sniper-power-grid/ dead In April 2014, PG&E offered a $250,000 reward for the capture and conviction of the suspects responsible.https://cbsnews.com/sanfrancisco/news/pge-offers-250000-reward-in-san-jose-substation-attack PG&E Offers $250,000 Reward In San Jose Substation Attack 2014-04-10 CBS News 11 February 2026 As of 2026, no arrests have been made.https://marketplace.org/story/2023/04/14/electrical-substation-attacks-security-wake-up-call Are utility companies — and the government — ready for the next attack on the grid? Jamali Lily 2023-04-13 Marketplace Minnesota Public Radio 11 February 2026 See also Electrical grid security in the United States Metcalf Energy Center Moore County substation attack References collapsed California Crime Category:2013 crimes in California Category:Acts of sabotage Category:April 2013 crimes in the United States Category:Attacks in the United States in 2013 Category:Attacks on electrical infrastructure in the United States Category:Crimes in the San Francisco Bay Area Category:Energy in the San Francisco Bay Area Category:Pacific Gas and Electric Company Category:Sniper attacks in the United States Category:Unsolved crimes in the United States