LONDON - A long spell of freezing weather gripping northern Europe has taken the lives of dozens of homeless people while resorts have suffered freak snowfalls.
Dozens of people trapped in their cars by avalanches in a tunnel in southern Russia were finally freed, but as many as 300 people were still feared to be in the tunnel.
Divers found four people dead in a Greek cargo ship which had capsized in bad weather in the Aegean Sea. Sixteen others aboard were missing.
About 20 people have frozen to death in Romania while seven weather related deaths have been recorded in France. The frozen bodies of three men were found at the weekend in Poland, bringing to 13 the number of deaths since the cold spell began.
Meanwhile, a storm pounding the Pacific Northwest of America has dumped rain, ice and snow on Washington state, where the governor has declared a state of emergency in 11 counties.