Europeans brace for megastorm

HURRICANE-force winds cut transport and power in northern Britain and blasted towards mainland Europe as meteorologists warned storm Xaver could be the worst to hit the continent in years.

British authorities said the Thames Barrier, designed to protect London from flooding during exceptional tides, would shut and warned of “the most serious coastal tidal surge for over 60 years in England”. Prime Minister David Cameron called two emergency meetings to discuss strategy.

Two people were killed as Britain’s weather office measured winds of up to 225km/h when the storm slammed Scotland and parts of England.

North Sea oil and gas producers, including ConocoPhillips, Maersk Oil and Statoil, cut production and evacuated staff from platforms.

The police advised more than 15 000 people to evacuate east coast areas vulnerable to tidal surges, although sea defences have been strengthened since flooding killed hundreds on the North Sea coast in 1953.

Germany’s Hamburg was preparing for a direct hit, which some forecasters said could be as powerful as a storm and flood in the city in 1962 that killed 315.

“The dangerous thing about this storm is that the winds will continue for hours,” said Andreas Friedrich, a German weather service meteorologist, adding: “The danger of coastal flooding is high.”

In Denmark, railroad company DSB said it would stop operating most trains. Trains in the northern Netherlands were halted. —