Alaska State Troopers are seeking information on New Year’s Eve rifle fire that damaged an electric transformer serving a Southeast Alaska village Monday night, temporarily knocking local power offline.
A Tuesday AST dispatch says Alaska Power and Telephone told troopers Monday that someone had used a high-powered rifle to shoot the transformer, near the community of about 180 people on Prince of Wales Island.
“The damage caused a substantial interruption in the electric system of Coffman Cove causing the system to switch to emergency diesel backup generators for approximately twenty-four hours,” troopers wrote. “The total cost to repair the damage to (the) electric system is estimated to be over $10,000.”
Anyone with information on who might have shot the transformer is asked to call troopers in Klawock at 1-800-754-2918.
