30,000 households without power after grid attack paralyses SW Berlin

Some 30,000 residents of Berlin, Germany, were left without power and heating for a third day after a weekend attack on the grid crippled supply in the south-west of the snow-covered German capital.

Some 45,000 households and over 2,200 businesses in the city’s Nikolassee, Zehlendorf, Wannsee and Lichterfelde neighbourhoods were cut off early on Saturday after cables leading to a power station were set ablaze by what Berlin authorities say was a group of left-wing militants.

Some 15,000 households and some 500 businesses have since had their power restored, but operator Stromnetz Berlin said it may take until Thursday for everyone to be back on the grid as repair work is complex.

Speaking on a morning programme of public broadcaster ZDF on Monday, Berlin Mayor Kai Wegner said the incident showed that infrastructure remains vulnerable to attacks.

While only a small part of the electricity grid runs above ground, protective measures need to be ramped up, Wegner said, calling for more surveillance cameras and security personnel to monitor the grid.

With temperatures hovering below 0 degrees Celsius, some schools and kindergartens in the area remained closed on what is the first school day after the Christmas holidays.

Police, firefighters and the military have been deployed to the affected areas to assist those who were not able to shelter with family or friends in other parts of Berlin.

Hospitals were able to continue operations thanks to emergency generators and have since seen their power restored, but many care homes remain affected, with aid organizations and the fire brigade setting up shelters for those in need.

In a letter of responsibility posted online on Sunday, the left-wing extremist Vulkangruppe (Volcano Group) says it “successfully sabotaged” a gas power station in Lichterfelde.

The group said its primary aim was to target the fossil fuel industry, noting that the action “resulted in power outages in the more affluent districts of Wannsee, Zehlendorf and Nikolassee.”

“We apologize to the less affluent residents of south-west Berlin,” it said.

Berlin authorities said on Sunday that they consider the letter to be authentic, with Mayor Wegner describing the attack as an act of terrorism.

But federal authorities urged caution on Monday, with the Interior Ministry saying it wasn’t clear yet who was behind the attack.

A left-wing extremist motive appeared “evident,” but investigations are still ongoing, a spokeswoman said, adding that Germany’s domestic intelligence agency was still reviewing the letter posted online.