Police in Schwäbish-Hall in Baden-Württemberg said on Saturday that a 70-year-old man was killed by a barn door loosened from its hinges while trying to park his car during winds gusting at up to 176 miles per hour.
The states of Hesse and Bavaria also reported several accidents on their highways that created traffic snarls for miles and kept rescue services busy for much of Saturday night. A 40-year-old man was reported to have died near Offenbach in Hesse after he lost control of his car on an icy road and collided with an oncoming vehicle.
Police in Bavaria reported that five people were injured, some of them severely, after an avalanche buried five cars and a truck.
The worst incidents were reported in Spain and southwestern France where the most savage gales for a decade killed at least 15 people and disrupted flights, trains and power supplies.