A 35-year-old German man stormed a district administrative office in Finsterwalde and set a room ablaze on the morning of 16 July 2026, sending four people to hospital with suspected smoke inhalation. The suspect carried an incendiary device into the Elbe-Elster district authority's branch office shortly after 8:00 a.m., where he threatened and insulted an employee of the youth welfare department before igniting the fire.
Firefighters evacuated between 20 and 30 people from the building. The district administration reported five injured in total. Police and prosecutors opened an investigation on suspicion of attempted homicide.
Authorities suspended all operations at the Finsterwalde site for the remainder of the day, with public appointments cancelled through the weekend.