Berlin power outage hits 45,000 homes after suspected arson attack | Germany
Tens of thousands of homes in Berlin will remain without power until Thursday as authorities try to repair power cables severely damaged in a suspected arson attack, officials said.
At a time when Germany’s capital is covered in snow and temperatures are approaching freezing, some households may not have heating systems as the outage affects local systems.
Emergency services were alerted early on Saturday that several high-voltage cables on a bridge near a power station were engulfed in flames.
Firefighters quickly extinguished the blaze, but about 45,500 homes and 2,200 businesses were left without power in areas of southwest Berlin, according to grid operator Stromnetz Berlin.
The extensive damage meant around 35,000 homes would be without power by Thursday afternoon, Berlin officials said in a statement. Power should be restored to other homes early Sunday.
“We are facing a serious power outage affecting tens of thousands of households and businesses, including care facilities, hospitals and many social institutions and companies,” said Franziska Giffey, Berlin’s senator for economic affairs.
The local district heating system, which carries heat through a network of pipes in the area, is affected because it runs on electricity.
Stromnetz Berlin warned that repair work would “take a very long time”, with media reports stating that cold weather was hindering efforts to lay new underground cables.
Police deployed around 160 officers to the scene in the Lichterfelde district and said “an investigation has been launched on suspicion of arson”.
They drove pickup trucks equipped with loudspeakers to affected areas and urged residents to stay with friends or relatives elsewhere if possible, use their mobile phones sparingly and carry flashlights.
Although trains were still running, local train stations were affected as electronic information signs and ticket machines were not working.
Giffey said Saturday’s outage was worse than the outage in September, when tens of thousands of people were left without power after fires broke out at utility poles in Berlin. Police also suspected arson in this incident, and an unnamed anarchist group claimed responsibility for starting the fire online.
Germany is on high alert against sabotage activities against its infrastructure, including by foreign actors such as Russia.
