This is absolutely terrible! I hope all of our European Bettermost friends are okay. Please check in and let us know...
(From the CNN Web site)
AMSTERDAM, Netherlands (AP) -- One of the fiercest storms in years battered northern Europe Thursday, killing at least nine people, injuring others and disrupting travel for thousands.
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, meanwhile, cut short her visit to Berlin in order to leave for London before winds worsened, landing in Britain's capital amid winds gusting up to 130 kph (80 mph).
The storm -- dubbed "Cyril" by German meteorologists -- was expected to intensify throughout the day.
"Our country has not had a storm like this in years," the Netherlands' Royal Weather Service said in a bulletin. "We advise you to follow weather alarms and messages to the letter."
The service compared Thursday's gale to a 1990 storm that peaked during the afternoon commute and killed 17. It reported heavy rain and recorded gusts of 130 kph (81 mph).
The first fatality Thursday was reported in Shropshire, England, where a 54-year-old man identified as Richard Heard, managing director of Birmingham Airport, was crushed in his car by a falling branch, according to a local ambulance service. Four others were reported killed in Britain.
One man was killed on a country road in southwestern Germany when he crashed into another car as he tried to avoid a fallen tree, police in Heidelberg said.
Two people were killed by a falling tree near Arnhem, Netherlands, and one was killed the same way in Lille, France.
In Utrecht, Netherlands, a building crane toppled onto a university building, crumpling the roof and injuring six.
Outside the European Commission headquarters in Brussels, flags of the 25 member nations were wrapped up at half staff as a precaution.
London's Heathrow Airport, Europe's largest, canceled 123 flights. Other major airports including Frankfurt, Munich, Amsterdam and Vienna reported delays and cancellations.
Rescue crews
At sea, coast guard ships and naval helicopters rescued the crew of a British container ship damaged and drifting in the English Channel, Britain's Coast Guard said.
Ferries were canceled or delayed in Britain, Ireland, France, Belgium, the Netherlands and Finland -- where minor floods were reported near Helsinki.
In Ireland and Latvia, winds kept rescue crews from helping other ships damaged or missing after storms earlier this week: seven fishermen from Ireland, Poland and Ukraine are missing and presumed dead off Ireland's coast, while Latvian rescuers were unable to attempt to salvage a Greek-owned cargo ship that ran aground Tuesday off the Baltic port of Ventspils and has been leaking oil.
A ship burst loose from its moorings near Rotterdam and smashed an oil pipeline, leaking around 1,600 cubic meters (10,000 barrels) of oil. The stench reached The Hague, 30 kilometers (20 miles) away, Dutch media said.
On land, residents along the North Sea coast were warned to expect storm swells up to 3.5 meters (11.5 feet) higher than normal.
Gusts blew off part of Lords cricket ground's roof in London, and tore panes of glass from London Bridge railway station's roof, scattering shattered glass over the concourse. No commuters were injured, British Transport Police said, adding that most of the station had been closed as a precautionary measure.
Trains in various parts of the Netherlands, Germany and Austria also were delayed. No trains were running from Utrecht and Amsterdam central stations because of debris on the rails.
The Dutch traffic ministry urged car owners to avoid travel unless absolutely necessary, and several key routes were closed due to damage or flooding. Many zoos were closed for safety.
"The security of our visitors and our animals is our highest priority," Hanover zoo director Klaus-Michael Machens said.
In Amsterdam, bicyclists who ventured out despite warnings from the fire department were seen blown over or, in some cases, backward.
In the north of the Netherlands, the world's largest steam-powered mill -- a UNESCO world heritage monument built in the 1920s -- was fired up for the second time this year to pump excess water away from the low-lying Friesland province.
Austria's national weather service said storm winds had the potential to reach 170 kph (105 mph) at higher altitudes in the Alps, and officials cautioned skiers and snowboarders to get off the mountains and seek shelter well before nightfall.
In southern Europe, untouched by the storm, sunny skies and mild temperatures prevailed.
