The first real winter in over decade hit the capital with temperatures falling to -10. The German Capital seems to have forgotten the havoc freezing cold weather can cause on a metropolis. Or perhaps the city’s famous indifference has once again come back to haunt Berlin.
If Berliners did not have a dog sled with a team of huskies or spiked shoes more than likely they experienced problems over the past few weeks getting around. The tram network completely stopped. Underground lines delayed. Trains no longer functioned. Buses did not come. Walking to the store or a short bike ride became limb risking hazard because of the ice sheets covering sidewalks. The city banned salting while building owners indifference to shovelling their fronts made for a living setting straight from Squid Games. One bad move, it is over.
A 775-year-old settlement located in Northern Europe on the Siberian Express Train Wind Track is ill-prepared for the winter is possible. While Hamburg came through the winter with fewer problems, Berlin faltered to the brink of standstill.
As politicians suddenly took to social media passing the buck, laughing at suggestions, playing the blame game, hospitals and other emergency services stood on the brink with patients suffering from broken limbs caused from icy paths. Mayor Kai Wegner, still reeling from his handling of the electric grid attack, came across as Homer Simpson running Springfield. The always chief in waiting Franziska Giffey did her usual video performance for Instagram, this time outside with a shovel in her gloved hands demonstrating how to move snow. When a policy fails, the bureaucracy no longer functions, content creation is the key.
One more month of winter, with mercy Spring will come early to save Berlin from the cold weather and the inept leaders occupying the Red Hall.