Following attack and power outage: expert commission appointed

Kai Wegner (CDU, second from right), Governing Mayor of Berlin, stands with Uwe Nerger (left to right), retired Brigadier General, Heyo Kroemer, Chairman of the Board of Charité Berlin, Sigrid Nikutta, Chairwoman of the Advisory Board at Alliance Critical Materials, and Albrecht Broemme, fire assessor, in his office.

Following the serious arson attack and major power outage in Berlin, the Senate has set up a commission of experts to look into the future protection of critical infrastructure and how to deal with such emergencies.

The four members of the commission are former BVG chief executive and railway manager Sigrid Nikutta, former president of the Federal Agency for Technical Relief (THW) Albrecht Broemme, head of Charité University Hospital Heyo Kroemer, and former brigadier general Uwe Nerger.

First report by the end of May

After the Senate meeting, Berlin's Governing Mayor Kai Wegner (CDU) said that the commission should submit a report by the end of May. The report should examine and analyse critical infrastructure. It should also contain recommendations for action based on lessons learned from this attack. The Senate will now also regularly discuss and decide on civil protection. This involves protecting critical infrastructure, improving disaster control, equipping security authorities such as the Office for the Protection of the Constitution, providing the necessary funding, and preparing and strengthening the resilience of the population.

Kritische Infrastruktur besser schützen

At its most recent meeting, the Senate also discussed the consequences of the power outage that lasted several days in south-west Berlin at the beginning of the year. A package of 66 proposals was discussed, but no concrete decisions have been made yet. Wegner spoke of a first step. Overall, the aim is to better protect critical infrastructure, better equip security agencies such as the Office for the Protection of the Constitution, improve disaster control and ensure that the Berlin population is adequately prepared for crises and disasters. Wegner cited the problems with the mobile phone network during the power outage as an example of tasks that still need to be resolved. It must be prevented from immediately leading to a complete failure. "We need to talk to the providers and operators about this." Another issue that needs to be clarified is which buildings can be supplied with electricity from emergency generators. Wegner announced his intention to provide greater support to the districts as a whole in the area of disaster control.

More staff for the districts

Interior Senator Iris Spranger (SPD) added that there must also be more personnel for civil protection and disaster control in the districts. So far, two positions have been allocated for this in the budget. "We will create three additional positions for each district, so that we have five positions in each district." Four of these will be allocated to disaster control and one to civil protection. Spranger also promised additional money for the districts for technical equipment, which must be as uniform as possible. The goal is to achieve the same level in all districts with regard to crises and major damage situations. Among other things, the siren network must also be expanded. Berlin needs more emergency power generators and more joint exercises to prepare for disasters.