A second major power outage has occurred in south-eastern France, this time in Nice, after a suspected arson attack damaged power grid equipment.
Police have yet to establish a link between the power outage that affected parts of Nice and the neighbouring towns of Cagnes-sur-Mer and Saint-Laurent-du-Var on Sunday and the one on Saturday that disrupted Cannes on the closing day of the famous film festival.
The power outage in Nice began at around 2am and left about 45,000 households without electricity.
Due to the overnight closure of Nice-Côte d'Azur Airport, tram service was temporarily suspended in the city and the airport experienced a brief power outage.
Power was fully restored by 5:30 a.m., according to energy company Enedis.
The Nice prosecutor announced the opening of a criminal case on the fact of “organized arson.”
On Saturday, two other properties in the Alpes-Maritimes department were also damaged in what authorities said may have been arson, temporarily cutting power to 160,000 homes, including events at the Cannes Film Festival.
Nice Mayor Christian Estrosi condemned the attack on Sunday and said the city had filed a complaint.
“I categorically condemn these malicious actions directed against our country,” he said on X.
He ordered police to patrol all important electrical infrastructure in the city.
“These actions could have serious consequences, especially for hospitals,” Mr Estrosi added at a news conference on Sunday.
“Until the criminals are caught, we remain on high alert.”
Sourse: breakingnews.ie
