EUROPE:At least 12 people were killed yesterday as strong winds lashed northern Europe, bringing down trees, causing travel chaos and forcing helicopters to pluck stranded sailors from the English Channel.
Britain was the worst hit with seven people killed as winds gusted up to 159 km/h (99 mph).
Four motorists died as gales battered the country, two people were killed in Manchester and a boy died after a wall collapsed on him in London.
Rescue services winched 26 sailors to safety after they were forced to abandon their container ship when it began sinking in stormy seas in the Channel.
Germans were told to stay indoors and many schools across the country closed early as rare hurricane-force winds bore down on them, killing at least three people and seriously disrupting air and rail travel.
Rescue services said they had mobilised extra staff to prepare for potential flooding and destructive winds.
"What's unusual about this storm is that it will affect the whole country and not just certain zones," said Christoph Hartmann, a spokesman for Germany's DWD meteorological service.
In the Netherlands, two people were killed when an uprooted tree crushed their car, Dutch news agency ANP reported.
Winds gusting at more than 100 km/h and heavy rains forced Dutch flight and rail cancellations, school closures and caused injuries in the worst storm in years.
The national crisis centre advised people to stay indoors. More than 30 accidents were reported.
Strong winds damaged the arched roof of Amsterdam's Central Station, with falling glass prompting authorities to ban passengers from platforms and stop trains from entering the station, a national rail service spokeswoman said. - (Reuters)