Power Outages Hit Nice Following Suspected Sabotage

Nice, France — A major power outage struck the French Riviera city of Nice early Sunday, affecting at least 45,000 homes after a fire at an electrical substation was deemed to be the result of a malicious act.

The blaze broke out around 2:00 a.m. local time, just one day after a similar incident caused widespread blackouts in nearby Cannes. Authorities suspect sabotage after police reported discovering tire tracks and a broken door at the substation.

Mayor Christian Estrosi condemned the attacks via a post on X, calling them “malicious acts that affect our country.” He noted that security measures will be strengthened around electric facilities in Nice following these incidents.

According to the local energy provider, Enedis, power was restored by 5:30 a.m. The outages disrupted public transport including the tramway network and briefly affected operations at Nice Côte d’Azur Airport.

The previous day, a power outage impacted around 160,000 homes in Cannes and surrounding towns. Officials reported that the blackout occurred due to an arson attack on a substation in Tanneron, along with damage to an electricity pylon in Villeneuve-Loubet.

The Cannes Film Festival, which concluded on Saturday, had to switch to alternative power supplies to maintain operations during the outages. Festival organizers reported minimal disruption, allowing all events to proceed as planned.

An investigation has been launched into what authorities are labeling as “organized arson.” Prosecutor Damien Martinelli stated that investigations are ongoing to determine the extent of the damage and identify the perpetrators.