BERLIN (dpa-AFX) – Berlin’s Governing Mayor Kai Wegner played his much-criticized game of tennis during the power outage in the southwest of the capital together with another Senate member: his partner, Education Senator Katharina Günther-Wünsch (both CDU).
Senate spokeswoman Christine Richter confirmed that both had played tennis on Saturday afternoon. A few hours earlier, Wegner had been informed about the arson attack resulting in the blackout. The “Tagesspiegel” had previously reported on Günther-Wünsch’s participation in what Wegner said was an hour-long match.
On Sunday, Wegner said in response to a journalist’s question that he had been on the phone all day Saturday trying to coordinate. He now sees the statement self-critically: “Looking back, I should have said on Sunday what I did on Saturday,” said Wegner in the RBB “Abendschau”.
The power outage was caused by an attack, presumably by left-wing extremists, on a cable bridge. Up to 100,000 people were without electricity, heating, internet and cell phone reception in the middle of winter. Berlin declared a so-called major damage situation and asked them Bundeswehr for administrative assistance./and/DP/zb