Icy storm lashes France and Germany causing hardship

An icy storm has been lashing parts of western Europe, causing power cuts in many homes, felling trees and disrupting some rail services.

In France power cuts affected more than 237,000 homes as the storm swept across Normandy and regions north of Paris.

In Dieppe, on the coast, the wind speed reached 146km/h (90.5mph), BBC reports.

The storm, nicknamed "Egon", later hit southern Germany - mainly Rhineland-Palatinate and northern Bavaria. Power cuts and traffic jams were widespread.

Emergency teams were out in force during the night in France and Germany.

Meanwhile, flood defences have been reinforced on Belgium's coast.

The cold snap across Europe has claimed more than 65 lives. Poland and much of southeastern Europe, including Romania, Bulgaria, Greece and western Turkey, are in the grip of heavy snow and freezing cold.

Thousands of migrants in the Balkans are poorly protected against the icy conditions, as many are still in tents and have little heating.

The wind and snow in Germany forced Lufthansa to cancel 125 flights at Frankfurt/Main airport.

And the German rail operator Deutsche Bahn set a 200km/h speed limit on high-speed ICE trains, which caused some travel delays.