German investigators suspect arson after substation fire cuts power to 40,000 in Reutlingen

What happened

A fire broke out during the night of Sunday to Monday at the Reutlingen-West substation, also affecting a second facility. The blaze was extinguished by around 5 a.m., but the damage caused a large-scale power outage across the city of roughly 100,000 inhabitants, located about 40 kilometres south of Stuttgart. Around 7,600 buildings and approximately 40,000 people were initially affected, according to Baden-Württemberg interior minister Manuel Hagel.

The investigation

Investigators from the State Criminal Police Office (LKA) in Stuttgart found signs that an accelerant was used at the scene. A spokesperson confirmed that evidence had been secured and was being analysed, including through the use of an accelerant-detection dog and expert assessments. The state protection unit and the anti-terrorism centre at the LKA have taken over the investigation, and a special task force named "Fischer" has been established.

Our investigation team will turn over every single stone, and we will hold the perpetrator accountable with the full force of the law.

Federal interior minister Alexander Dobrindt told ZDF that authorities assume the incident was "in all probability an arson attack." However, the LKA stated that there are currently no leads on possible suspects or motives, and the investigation remains open in all directions.

Impact on the city

The outage affected a hospital in Reutlingen, which temporarily relied on emergency generators. Planned surgeries had to be postponed, though the hospital was reconnected to the grid by the afternoon. Traffic lights failed, schools and kindergartens lost power, and supermarket refrigeration systems stopped working. Mayor Thomas Keck said the hospital's situation meant the incident "radically endangered other people's lives — and that is unforgivable."

We must defend ourselves — we do not yet know against whom.

By Monday afternoon, parts of the city centre, including the hospital, had been reconnected. Residential areas in Betzingen and Ohmenhausen also regained power, but affected businesses remained disconnected. Authorities set up an emergency meeting point for the night where residents could charge phones and warm baby food. Full restoration of power remains uncertain, with officials warning it will "not happen quickly."

Possible extremist link

Security circles cited by the German Press Agency (dpa) noted that the modus operandi points toward left-wing extremist perpetrators and bears parallels to attacks in Berlin. In January 2025, a fire at a substation claimed by the far-left group Vulkangruppe left around 100,000 people in Berlin without electricity. The group has claimed responsibility for a dozen attacks since 2011, including a March 2024 arson on power lines supplying the Tesla factory near Berlin. No indications of a foreign mastermind have been found in the Reutlingen case.

In recent years we have repeatedly seen attacks on energy infrastructure, particularly from the far-left spectrum.

Response and security

A riot police unit was deployed to Reutlingen to maintain a visible presence at critical infrastructure sites and in areas still without power. Hagel promised that the perpetrators would be brought to justice after what he called an "intentional fire that affected public services." The damage from the fire and the outage is estimated at several million euros, according to dpa.