Bavarian Oktoberfest Resumes Operations After Fatal Arson Attack and Explosives Warning

A German man carried out a lethal violent spree involving shooting, bombs, and arson against his family before taking his own life on midweek, causing safety concerns in the Bavarian capital that resulted in the seven-hour shutdown of the world-famous beer celebration.

Officials opted to close the event for a short period after finding a message the individual had left in a nearby mailbox that contained a ambiguous warning aimed at the city's beer festival.

Munich's leader later gave the safety signal in the midday, and the festivities reopened in the evening.

Law enforcement reported that the individual in his late 50s had shot at his parents using a self-made weapon in an attack that began in the early hours.

He then, he set their house on fire, having earlier booby-trapped the building with explosives.

Authorities indicated they believed he had likely killed his 90-year-old father, whose remains was observed but could not be recovered from the still-burning house in the metropolitan green northern Lerchenau district.

He also shot his 81-year-old mother, who was later taken to hospital with wounds not considered life-threatening.

His young adult daughter was also hurt but was saved by firefighters from the first floor, having threatened to leap to escape the fire.

The man, who has not been identified, ran off after a law enforcement aircraft spotted him in the garden.

Following a brief chase, he halted in a park by the lake and took his own life.

Bomb squads were called in because the man had rigged the building with bomb materials – reportedly explosive devices attached to trip wires – and was also carrying an bag filled with bombs.

Throughout the incident, he had also set three vehicles ablaze outside the residence, including his own vehicle.

The crime sparked a major police mobilisation just prior to 5:00 am local time and then the evacuation of nearby residents and a local school.

Approximately 500 police, firefighters and other first responders were deployed during the daylong crisis management efforts.

A state official stated there was no indication of a political or religious motive.

"Evidence suggests, incomprehensible as it may be, that this was solely a family matter," he added.

Municipal officials responded to the alarm by announcing the temporary closure of the festival, regarded as the world's largest such gathering.

This annual celebration, taking place from 20 September to 5 October this year, attracted millions of visitors in 2024.

It was hit by a historical incident in 1980 when a extremist organization detonated a improvised explosive, claiming the lives of a dozen individuals and wounding more than 200 others.