Thousands without power in Berlin as police suspect arson

Thousands of people are without electricity in south-eastern Berlin after a widespread power outage, police said on Tuesday.

Initial investigations suggest that the power cut was due to arson, with two high-voltage pylons having caught fire, a police spokesman said.

The flames have since been extinguished and criminal police are at the scene to investigate the cause of the fire.

Emergency forces have been deployed to the affected districts of Altglienicke, Grünau, Adlershof, Spindlersfeld, Alt-Johannisthal and Oberschöneweide, police said in a post on X.

The cut disrupted tram services in the area as well as traffic lights, according to police.