Electricity is back for 45,000 Berlin homes and businesses after a days-long blackout caused by an arson attack claimed by left-wing extremists.
BERLIN: Power has been fully restored to tens of thousands of Berlin homes and businesses after a days-long blackout caused by an arson attack.
The attack on high-voltage cables early Saturday was claimed by a left-wing extremist group calling itself the Vulkangruppe, or Volcano Group.
Some 45,000 households and 2,200 businesses in the southwestern Steglitz-Zehlendorf district were plunged into darkness.
All affected properties were reconnected to the grid by 2:10 pm local time on Wednesday, according to Berlin’s senator for economic affairs, Franziska Giffey.
The blackout forced the closure of schools and hospitals during a period of sub-zero temperatures.
Marion Senhs, owner of a horse-riding equipment shop, said she was still “a little frozen” after the ordeal.
“Things won’t return to normal that quickly,” she told AFP.
German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt has stated the arson attack qualifies as an act of left-wing terrorism.
A federal terrorism investigation into the incident was launched on Tuesday.
The interior ministry said there were no signs of Russian involvement, despite Germany’s recent accusations of Russian hybrid attacks.
Restaurant owner Milenko Petrovic, 38, said he felt “let down” by the official reaction.
“We had no information, we had nowhere to turn to,” he said, noting phone and internet connections were also knocked out.
District mayor Maren Schellenberg stated, “We must realise that we cannot protect ourselves from every attack.”
An 83-year-old woman from the area died during the blackout after being found in her flat, according to police.
The Vulkangruppe has claimed responsibility for 12 attacks since 2011, including a 2024 sabotage of power lines near the Tesla factory outside Berlin.
