Item — HN Reader

> All from public sources.

Relevant PG&E: https://experience.arcgis.com/experience/641b21b495f049c6958...

> (like the MAGAs shooting substations)

There's no need to partisanize this. There's a very famous 2013 one from right here in the Bay Area that AFAIK is still unsolved: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metcalf_sniper_attack

> And there's obvious national security aspects with shutting down energy grid operations.

This reminds me of visiting the Moffat Tunnel and being surprised by the heavy security labeled Department of Homeland Security of all things. Then I realized there's a giant pipe running alongside the tracks that carries the water supply for the entirety of Denver lol

2 comments

DHS has a significant presence at many transportation infrastructure choke points as well as energy/resource infrastructure. It makes sense... an undefended tunnel or bridge would be easy to disrupt and could cause chaos. Note also the ~6+ (NYPD, NY State police, NJ State Police, MTAPD, PANYNJPD, NY National Guard, US Coast Guard, probably ICE since the ramp-up) law enforcement/defense organizations with a presence around the Hudson River crossings.

> NYPD

I always think about this when I watch the WKUK “It's illegal to say…” sketch, because “under the Brooklyn Bridge” is like adjacent to One Police Plaza https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QEQOvyGbBtY

I've been to the Moffat Tunnel many times and I never realized there was a water project associated with the better known rail tunnel there. FWIW, I've also never seen any sort of security there. Besides a lone Gilpin county sheriff's deputy who lives out along that road and makes it his life's mission to ticket any vehicle parked illegally on the county road.

https://www.denverwater.org/tap/tunnel-next-tunnel-no-one-kn...

Here's my pic of the east and west portals (respectively) from the last time I visited in 2022: https://i.imgur.com/sH0RNyg.jpeg https://i.imgur.com/fGdzV4G.jpeg

The big black fence around the east portal didn't used to be there, and you can see the DHS surveillance gantry right over the tracks. You can't get anywhere close enough to even read the plaque/dedication embedded on the right side of the portal. Hope you have a good telephoto lens!

On the west side, the DHS cameras are back to the left out of frame of the shot, at the very eastern edge of the Winter Park station platform. The water system is also much more visible on the west side than on the east side: https://earth.google.com/web/search/Winter+Park,+CO/@39.8871...

The east side is much less important-looking because it just becomes South Boulder Creek: https://earth.google.com/web/search/Winter+Park,+CO/@39.9022...

And here's one of my favorite hobo channels taking a ride through it westbound :) https://youtu.be/xNvnHAkm5dk?t=2715 and west portal emergence with the water pipe clearly in view: https://youtu.be/xNvnHAkm5dk?t=2787