AN “ultra-left anarchist gang” has claimed responsibility for a blackout that plunged 160,000 homes into darkness on the Côte d’Azur – just hours before the Cannes Film Festival awards show.

"We are looking into the likelihood of a fire being started deliberately," said a spokesperson for the French national gendarmerie, adding that no arrests had been made at this stage.

French authorities on Sunday blamed sabotage and ordered heightened security after a fire at an electricity sub-station in Nice caused the second major power blackout in two days along the Riviera.The latest fire cut power to about 45,

Join ‘Vanity Fair’ on the ground at the 78th annual Cannes Film Festival, where we’re bringing you up-to-the-minute news, gossip, and film reviews.

An electrical transformer was set on fire in what appears to be an act of vandalism. Some 45,000 homes were temporarily without power in Nice and some neighboring towns. Power was restored by early Sunday morning.

From a look back at a groundbreaking classic to a wild portrait of our politically fractured moment — our picks for the film festival's highlights.

Nice following the one that affected the Cannes area on Saturday. The intentional fire of an electrical transformer caused a new massive blackout in southern France in the early hours of Sunday. More than 45,