German officials believe a left-wing group is responsible for a major blackout in southwestern Berlin, which has cut off power and heat to tens of thousands of homes, medical facilities, and care homes amid sub-zero weather. The disruption started early Saturday and may continue through Thursday.

UPI reports the power outages stemmed from a blaze that badly harmed high-voltage lines close to a co-generation plant serving areas like Steglitz and Wannsee, impacting around 45,000 residences, per official reports. A leftist organization known as the Vulkangruppe (Volcano Group) has taken credit for the incident saying it was done to protest against fossil fuels.

The Vulkangruppe has acknowledged carrying out sabotage operations in previous instances. In 2024, it assumed responsibility for an arson attack involving a power pylon close to Tesla’s facility on the edges of Berlin, causing the company to pause assembly lines for multiple days. A similar arson incident to today’s also took place during September but no one took responsibility.

According to a 2019 assessment by Berlin officials, Volcano Group was designated as a left-wing extremist outfit, with records of arson activities dating back to 2011 that targeted elements such as cables, antenna structures, and railroad systems.

This will go over real well with Germans who have to endure the bitter cold this time of year.