Police in Bend searched Friday for a severely injured person after someone broke into a large power box and cut high-voltage electrical wires, authorities said.

Pacific Power reported on Wednesday that someone went behind a locked gate with a “no trespassing” sign and cut high-voltage electrical wires, Bend Police Department spokesperson Sheila Miller said.

Miller said that police found a smoking, hot power box with bolt cutters still inside. The person is likely severely injured from the electric shock, and possibly has life-threatening injuries, she said.

“The lead officer on the case believes it may have been an attempt to steal copper or other wiring,” Miller said, “but it is not a theft case as nothing was taken.” Damage is estimated to be at least $20,000, according to Pacific Power.

About 1,600 customers lost power as a result, said Omar Granados, spokesperson for Pacific Power. The electrical company provides power to households in Oregon, Washington and Northern California.

Power was restored to all affected customers within about seven hours, he said.

This is not the first attack on the electrical grid in Oregon and Western Washington. In 2022, the electrical grid was physically attacked at least six times from mid-November to early December in 2022. That was after a U.S. Department of Homeland Security report warned domestic extremists had been developing plans to attack electricity infrastructure since 2020 according to the Associated Press.

Miller told OPB there was no indication this week’s incident in Bend was related to those attacks. The suspect remains at large with no leads or updates on the case, she said Friday.

News Source : https://www.opb.org/article/2026/01/23/bend-wire-cutting-power-outage/