Large-scale blackout in Berlin due to a fire on a power line. Police suspect arson

Tens of thousands of homes in the southeast of Germany's capital were left without electricity due to a fire on two high-voltage power line poles. By data according to the Berlin police, the fire occurred on the evening of September 8.

It took firefighters an hour to put out the fire, reports tagesschau. Thick cables on two high poles on Koenigsheideweg were damaged and partially destroyed by fire. According to preliminary data, the attackers used fuel, such as gasoline.

The power outage has affected suburban trains and traffic lights. Emergency numbers are partially unavailable, and there are mobile phone failures,

According to local grid operator Stromnetz Berlin, the blackout began early in the morning on September 9, leaving about 50,000 households and businesses without power.

As of 14:56 local time, power supply was restored to 15,000 households.

A Berlin police spokesperson said the incident was likely caused by arson, as the methods and targets point to political motivation. National security authorities have taken control of the investigation and are collecting evidence.

The restoration of power supply may take until Wednesday, Stromnetz Berlin noted, as technical work can only begin after the police work is completed.

Berlin regularly experiences power outages, albeit on a smaller scale.

"This is an absolute exception," a representative of Stromnetz Berlin was quoted as saying.

The current incident can be compared to the power outage in Berlin in 2019. Back then, a cable was damaged during construction work. The outage affected more than 30,000 households and 2,000 businesses and lasted about 30 hours.

• on July 4, 2025, the Czech Republic was hit by a large-scale power supply failurepart of Prague and a number of other regions were left without power.
• august 11 a large-scale blackout has occurred in Iraq due to the abnormal heat and the influx of pilgrims.