French authorities are investigating suspected acts of sabotage after a major power outage affected 160,000 homes in southern France on Saturday, temporarily disrupting the closing day of the prestigious Cannes Film Festival.
Coordinated Infrastructure Attacks
The outage, which began around 10 a.m. local time, was the result of coordinated attacks on electrical infrastructure, according to Laurent Hottiaux, the prefect for the Alpes-Maritimes region. Investigators found evidence of arson at an electrical substation west of Cannes and damage to a high-voltage transmission tower east of the city.
"All resources are mobilized to identify, track down, arrest and bring to justice the perpetrators of these serious acts of damage to electrical infrastructures," Hottiaux stated in an official release.
In Cannes, the power cut temporarily disrupted festival activities, with traffic lights failing throughout parts of the city and most shops along the famous Croisette boulevard remaining closed. Many food kiosks were only accepting cash, and train service in the area was also affected.
Festival Continues Despite Challenges
Cannes Film Festival organizers quickly activated backup generators at the Palais des Festivals, enabling the prestigious event's closing ceremony—including the much-anticipated Palme d'Or award—to proceed as scheduled. Power was restored to most affected areas by 3 p.m., approximately five hours after the initial outage.
"All scheduled events and screenings, including the Closing Ceremony, will proceed as planned and under normal conditions," festival officials announced midday.
The restoration of power was met with loud cheers from locals and festival attendees. Despite the disruption, the evening's Palme d'Or ceremony went ahead smoothly, with Jafar Panahi's "It Was Just an Accident" claiming the festival's top prize.
Additional Incident in Nice
The sabotage in Cannes was followed by another suspected attack in nearby Nice on Saturday night. According to Nice Mayor Christian Estrosi, a deliberately set fire at an electrical transformer in the city's Moulins district cut power to 45,000 homes until early Sunday morning.
"I strongly condemn these malicious acts that affect our country," Estrosi wrote on social media, announcing plans to strengthen security around electrical sites.
Context of Social Unrest
While authorities have not confirmed a direct connection between the two incidents, they come amid a period of social unrest in France. Contributing factors include:
- Ongoing protests against pension reforms
- Previous threats by energy worker unions to target high-profile events
- Growing economic inequality in the region
- Tensions related to upcoming regional elections
Security officials have increased patrols around critical infrastructure sites throughout southern France as the investigation continues.
