DistantNews
Support us
Berlin Mayor Wegner's statements on power outage calls questioned
🇩🇪 Germany /Disasters & Emergencies

Berlin Mayor Wegner's statements on power outage calls questioned

From Der Spiegel · () German

Translated from German, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources New plan
  • Berlin's Governing Mayor Kai Wegner appears to have misled the public about his official phone calls during a major power outage.
  • Official communications show Wegner did not make any work-related calls until after 12:45 PM on the day of the blackout, contradicting his earlier statements.
  • Opposition politicians have called the new findings "serious" and stated that Wegner has lost the trust of Berlin residents.

Berlin's Governing Mayor Kai Wegner is facing accusations of misleading the public regarding his actions during a significant power outage that affected thousands of households. New information from the Senate Chancellery, obtained after a legal challenge by the newspaper "Tagesspiegel," suggests Wegner's accounts of his official communications on January 3rd, the day of the blackout, were inaccurate.

I did indeed start making the calls at 8:08 AM.

— Kai WegnerStated in a 'Welt TV' interview on January 7th, referring to his actions during the Berlin power outage.

The blackout, caused by an arson attack on a cable bridge, left up to 45,000 homes in the Steglitz-Zehlendorf district without power for four days. Wegner had previously claimed in a January 7th interview that he began making official calls at 8:08 AM that morning. However, the Senate Chancellery's records indicate that no work-related phone calls were made by Wegner before 12:45 PM. Instead, communication occurred via text messages.

The first official phone call recorded was at 12:45 PM with Economics Senator Franziska Giffey. This new evidence directly contradicts Wegner's earlier statements, leading to accusations that he has made false claims on at least three occasions concerning his official activities during the crisis. The opposition has seized on these discrepancies, with Bettina Jarasch, co-leader of the Green Party in Berlin, calling the revelations "serious."

No phone call was made before 12:45 PM. Rather, the exchange took place via text messages.

— Senate ChancelleryOfficial statement detailing Wegner's communications on the morning of the power outage.

"He has lost the trust of Berlin residents, who can no longer rely on the truth of his statements," Jarasch stated. The revelations place Wegner under intense scrutiny for his crisis management and raise questions about transparency and accountability in his administration.

The new findings are serious. He has made false statements about his official activities during the power outage on at least three occasions. With that, he has lost the trust of Berlin residents as Governing Mayor, who can no longer rely on the truth of his statements.

— Bettina JaraschReacting to the discrepancies in Mayor Wegner's accounts of his actions during the blackout.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Der Spiegel in German. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

More Stories

From Our Blog