Power Outage in Reutlingen: Investigators Examine Possible Arson

The suspicion is of "intentional arson and disruption of public utilities." Investigators are pursuing all leads without prejudgment. This includes clarifying whether "an arson attack has indeed occurred here or even a terrorist act." The state protection division of the state criminal police office and the Anti-Terrorism Center have taken over the investigation. However, it was still too early for a definitive assessment, the Interior Minister stressed.

At a morning press conference, a police spokeswoman merely stated: "We are considering whether it could possibly be a technical defect or an act of arson, possibly negligent or also intentional." At midday, around 7,600 households were still affected. An investigation team codenamed "Fischer" was established.

Reactions from Politics and the City

Reutlingen's Mayor Thomas Keck (SPD) stated that the city's hospital had also been affected by the power outage. This had endangered lives - "and that is inexcusable." Keck announced: "We must defend ourselves - we do not yet know against whom." Interior Minister Hagel vowed: "We will hold the perpetrators accountable with the full force of the law."

Security of Power Grids in Baden-Württemberg

Meanwhile, the question of whether such incidents are conceivable in other parts of Baden-Württemberg is occupying experts and security authorities. When asked how likely arson attacks by left-wing extremists were in Baden-Württemberg, the response was: "However, we assume that a scale like what we are currently seeing in Berlin is very unlikely in Baden-Württemberg."

Sebastian Ackermann, Head of Communications at EnBW, stated that the energy provider's facilities were "secured to the highest degree." At the time, Baden-Württemberg's largest energy provider saw no reason for concern: "All systems are redundantly available." "Surveillance technologies" were installed at all facilities, Ackermann said in January.

However, he acknowledged: "We have a redundant system that would initially absorb a power outage." Nonetheless, many grids stretch for thousands of kilometers across open terrain, "and you cannot secure all of them." The transmission system operator TransnetBW also confirmed in response to an SWR inquiry that the grid in Baden-Württemberg was prepared to "cushion even unusual situations."

Torsten Höck warned: "The potential for damage and the consequences can be enormous." Sebastian Ackermann emphasized at the same time: "The issue must definitely be discussed again within the energy industry." According to the 2024 Report on the Protection of the Constitution, there are approximately 2,700 left-wing extremists in Baden-Württemberg, of whom 850 are classified as "violence-oriented."

It is not new that a power outage in a major Baden-Württemberg city can last for hours. In Stuttgart at the end of 2024, around 3,000 people were without electricity for hours. Civil protection in Baden-Württemberg is a matter for the state, as far as the responsibilities and accountabilities for such crisis situations are concerned.