Attempted arson attack on power substation in western Germany

German authorities are investigating an attempted arson attack on an electrical substation in Erkrath, a town in the western state of North Rhine–Westphalia, officials said.

According to Wolf-Tilman Baumert, a spokesperson for the Wuppertal public prosecutor’s office, an extremist group calling itself "Kommando Angry Birds" claimed responsibility for the attack in a letter circulated on social media. The group said it had tried to set fire to one of the substation’s two transformers, Caliber.Az reports via German media.

Prosecutors said the suspects used approximately nine litres of liquid fuel and a pyrotechnic detonator in an effort to disable the transformer. The attempt failed, and the substation continued operating without interruption.

Baumert described the incident as an attack on critical infrastructure, warning that a successful strike could have caused a large-scale power outage.

The investigation is being handled by the state security service in Düsseldorf. No arrests have been reported, and authorities have not released further details about the suspects or their motives.

By Sabina Mammadli