Storm Ciaran's 200kph winds cause travel chaos in Europe

Three people have been killed and dozens of flights cancelled as Storm Ciaran made landfall, bringing winds of up to 200kph.

In the Netherlands, Dutch airline KLM said it scrapped dozens of flights to and from Amsterdam Schiphol on Thursday, ahead of the storm which is expected to bring gusts of up to 110kph.

“We have decided to cancel all KLM flights to and from Schiphol from early afternoon until the end of the day,” a representative for Air France KLM said.

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International trains from the Dutch capital to Paris were also cancelled and shipping lanes to the south-west of the country were closed.

Meanwhile, airport operator Aena said 42 flights in Spain were cancelled on Thursday after half that number were grounded the previous day.

More than a million households were left without electricity in France on Thursday after the storm made landfall, with parts in the north on red alert for strong winds.

In Brittany, where winds of up to 207kph were recorded on the Pointe du Raz, two people were injured and travel was prohibited, local prefect Alain Espinasse told RTL radio.

“I repeat: stay at home,” he said.

Transport Minister Clement Beaune told Franceinfo radio that a lorry driver died in Aisne, north-east of Paris, when a tree fell on his vehicle. Another 15 people, including seven firefighters, were injured in other incidents.

“This shows that even in regions that are not on red alert, there is a very high risk on the road,” Mr Beaune said.

A woman died in Spain when a tree fell on her in central Madrid, emergency services said. Three people were injured.

One person also died in Belgium due to a falling tree, Belgian daily Le Soir reported on Thursday, citing local police.

In Britain, the Channel Islands were among the areas worst hit, with the BBC reporting windows had been blown in and one roof ripped off a house on Jersey, forcing families to move into nearby hotels.

A red wind warning, the highest level, was issued by Jersey Met for Wednesday into Thursday, with people warned to avoid outside activity due to predicted gusts of about 160kph.

One Jersey homeowner, Suzie Phillips, said: "The hailstones were quite a bit heavier and bigger than a golf ball and we've had three windows damaged by them, in my daughter's bedroom, a landing and a bathroom.

"It was quite worrying, especially for the kids. They were quite anxious about it."

On the UK mainland, forecasters issued two amber wind warnings, the second highest level of alert, for parts of the south coast of England, together with further yellow rain warnings, a lower level which means some disruption could be on the way.

A spokeswoman for London's Heathrow Airport said it had not been affected by the weather but London Gatwick experienced some disruption.

Fallen trees near Caen in western France. AFP

A representative for Gatwick told The National: "Storm Ciaran across the south-east has caused some delays this morning. As always, safety of passengers and staff is our number one priority and we are working closely with our airline partners to minimise any disruption.

"We advise passengers to check the status of their flight with their airline before travelling."

The Met Office warned of coastal gusts of 112kph to 128kph, with the potential for speeds of up to 136kph.

People were urged not to go near the water's edge due to “very dangerous conditions”.

An amber warning was put place in Cornwall and Devon, with the Met Office predicting Storm Ciaran will bring winds of 120kph to 136kph, with inland gusts of 104kph to 120kph.

A major incident was declared by the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Local Resilience Forum, with the local fire service warning that there was a “potential risk to life” as well as a risk of damage to buildings, falling trees and flooding.

But Hampshire and the Isle of Wight Local Resilience Forum (LRF) later downgraded it on Thursday afternoon as the area had not experienced the "full extent of the forecast weather".

Assistant Chief Constable Paul Bartolomeo, LRF chairman, said: "While we have seen flooding of properties and roads, power outages and disruption to the highways networks caused by the wind and rain, we have thankfully not seen the full extent of the forecast weather and we are now in a position to stand down the major incident response."

The Met Office also dialled back their wind warnings later on Thursday morning, with one amber warning, the second most severe, remaining in place for the south of England until noon.

Flooding is expected in 77 areas, according to the Environment Agency, most of which are on the south coast of England.

Further north, train passengers in parts of Scotland and on some cross-border services will face delays until Saturday morning due to weather warnings in place as a result of Storm Ciaran, rail operators have announced.

Rail operator LNER said no services will run between Edinburgh and Aberdeen until Saturday in both directions.

Its service between Newcastle and Edinburgh will run hourly from 3pm on Thursday until the end of service on Friday.

Speed restrictions will be in place on the route, which may see services subject to delays of up to 40 minutes.

Network Rail is imposing speed restrictions across parts of Scotland and while most ScotRail services will be unaffected, some areas will see delays.

Speed restrictions will be in place on routes between Aberdeen and Inverness; Dundee and Aberdeen; Inverness and Wick; and Perth and Inverness.

ScotRail said the first of these speed restrictions will be in place from 3pm on Thursday and last until 8am on Saturday.

Direct ScotRail services between Edinburgh and Glasgow to Aberdeen have been cancelled from Friday morning until mid-afternoon, with passengers required to change trains at Dundee.

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Some of Darwish's last words

"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008

His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.