Berlin power plant fire is claimed by left-wing militant group

Police say the group Vulkangruppe sent a letter claiming it set a fire near the Lichterfelde heat and power station, and the outage affected about 45,000 homes and 2,200 businesses.

A left-wing activist group says it set a fire near the Lichterfelde heat and power station in Berlin that caused a widespread outage. Police reported receiving a letter from the group Vulkangruppe and described the claim as credible. Stromnetz Berlin said thousands of homes and businesses lost power and restorations are being carried out in stages. Emergency generators were provided to some hospitals and some schools may remain closed. Known details: - Police reported a claim of responsibility from Vulkangruppe and described the letter as credible. - The incident affected infrastructure near the Lichterfelde heat and power station and resulted in a large power outage. - Stromnetz Berlin reported roughly 45,000 homes and 2,200 businesses lost power and said some customers may not have electricity restored until Thursday afternoon. - Emergency generators were supplied to some hospitals and some people were relocated from facilities or homes because of the outage. Summary: The outage disrupted households, businesses and some public services, and regional business representatives said they expect damage costing millions. Police are investigating and have not announced a next legal or procedural step. Undetermined at this time.