Gales wreak havoc across Europe

Some gusts in the UK reached more than 90mph

At least twenty-one people have been killed after gale force winds left a trail of destruction across the UK and north west Europe.

Winds reaching speeds of more than 90mph wreaked havoc on roads and railways, with trees felled, power lines ripped down and cars overturned.

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Seven people, including three children, died in Britain after they were hit by falling trees and debris, as the gales caused an estimated £50m damage.

Another 15 were killed in north west Europe, including a 13-year-old who was slammed into a truck by the powerful wind while he was roller-skating.

The winds eased later on Sunday, and in the UK calmer weather is promised for the start of the week.

Trees and high winds damaged power lines, leaving thousands of homes in England, Wales and Ireland without electricity.

In Shropshire a falling tree killed a 14-year-old girl who was a passenger in a car on the A41, as well as injuring two other occupants.

Toddler killed

A 12-year-old boy died in Costessey on the outskirts of Norwich, Norfolk, after a falling tree was blown onto him while he was walking his dog with a group of friends.

Electricity company 24Seven said at the peak of the strong winds 157,000 homes and businesses in the region were without power in East Anglia alone.

Waves batter northern French port of Auderville

In Europe, gusts reached 81mph (130 kph) in the Netherlands, where a man walking his dog in the eastern town of Enschede was killed by a falling tree, and a 77-year-old man lost his footing and died when he fell on to a fence in the town of Hilversum.

Two others died when they were blown into the North Sea while in Belgium, and a 13-year-old roller-skater was killed when he was slammed into a truck in the seaside resort of Wenduine.

Part of the roof of Antwerp's 10,000-seat Sports Palace was also blown off.

In France, four people were killed, two when a tree crashed onto their car north of Paris.

Transport chaos

The weather-induced chaos also caused huge delays on the railways, with particularly severe disruption on both east and west coast mainlines.

Virgin said normal services, leaving London Euston on the west coast mainline, would not resume until early Monday.

HMS St Albans was damaged when it was hit by a ferry

On the east coast, trains between Kings Cross and Doncaster were suspended because of high winds, debris on the lines and damage to the infrastructure, with services also suspended between Leeds and Doncaster.

Flights were also affected with British Airways cancelling 32 services out of London's Heathrow airport and seven out of Gatwick. Thirty flights from Stansted were also cancelled.

Three out of four runways at Amsterdam's Schipol Airport were closed, with planes filled with fuel to provide extra ballast.

In Britain, race meetings and theme parks such as Alton Towers in Staffordshire and Thorpe Park in Surrey were also cancelled or shut down.

Sunny spells

The M4 Swansea Bridge, the M48 Severn Bridge and the QE2 bridge, at Dartford, were closed.

Most ferries to Ireland, Holland and France were also cancelled - leaving some travellers with a wait of up to 36 hours.

The BBC Weather Centre said Monday would be much better, with most areas of Britain having sunny spells.

Showers are likely, mainly over western and northern areas, and it will be wintry over high ground in the north.