Deliberate fire at Domegliara electrical substation, Brenner trains blocked for hours
An intentionally set fire at an electrical installation near Verona has paralysed the Brenner railway line. Investigators are examining eco-anarchist motives.
Deliberate fire at Domegliara electrical substation, Brenner trains blocked for hours
In the night between Friday and Saturday, an electrical installation located near Domegliara station, above Verona, was engulfed in flames. The resulting power failure immobilised the Brenner railway line for more than one hundred and twenty minutes, with trains halted and services delayed until after midday.
Investigations conducted on site confirmed the deliberate nature of the incident: lighters and combustible substances were found near the burnt-out structure. Specialist police units and Verona's counter-terrorism services are examining CCTV footage and are directing their investigation towards eco-anarchist groups active in the Triveneto region.
The incident occurred simultaneously with a massive environmental protest on the Austrian side of the border, which resulted in the complete closure of the Brenner motorway for more than eight hours. Approximately three thousand protesters took to the streets against the impact of commercial traffic. No one has claimed responsibility for the action against the electrical substation, however.
The power cut affected the tracks between Peri and Dolcè. Despite the road interruption, an effective preventive awareness campaign avoided the feared collapse of traffic on the artery connecting the Mediterranean to Northern Europe, which is travelled annually by more than fourteen million cars and two and a half million heavy goods vehicles.
Paolo Borchia, leader of the League group in Brussels, described the act as "disturbing" and an assault on one of the continent's main infrastructure spines, calling for "zero tolerance and swift identification of those responsible".
Source: la Repubblica
Source: la Repubblica