Czech Republic battered by strong winds


A clean-up operation continues in many parts of the country in the wake of damage caused by gale-force winds overnight.

Damaged power lines left thousands of homes without power and road and rail traffic was disrupted by fallen trees.

In the Snežka Mountain region the wind blew at over 206 km per hour, in the lower altitudes at around 110 km per hour.

Emergency workers were on call throughout the night, with fire-crews reporting over 2,800 emergency calls in the course of the nigh hours.