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Two dead and thousands lose power in Spain snow storms

Two hikers were found dead and thousands have been hit by blackouts due to strong winds and snow storms across Spain.

Two dead and thousands lose power in Spain snow storms
Photo: Cesar Manso/AFP.

Two hikers were found dead after being lost during a storm of intense wind and snow in Castellón at the weekend.

The two women had gone missing on Saturday along with a man who was found alive on Sunday by emergency services around the mountainous area of Tinença de Benifassà, according to the Generalitat Valenciana.

A search helicopter had found the man, who then helped emergency responders find the bodies of the two women. The man was taken to hospital, though the local government reported that he was in a “good condition”.

“The government expresses its condolences for the death of the two hikers,” the Generalitat wrote in a statement.

Elsewhere, more than 10,000 homes in Aragón and Navarra had blackouts during power outages caused by storms of rain, snow and wind in the northern regions, Aragón's government reported on Saturday.

By Sunday, that number had been reduced to 2,000 and on Monday morning, the local government reported that snowplows allowed workers turn the power back on for many residents, though 250 still remained without electricity in the mountainous town of Teruel.

Some of the roads in Aragón have also been closed off due to the weather.

On Monday, Spain's weather service AEMET put eight provinces on orange alert – meaning “significant risk” – for intense winds and storms. 

Many on social media shared pictures of snow-covered towns and landscapes at the weekend.

“Yesterday in 'Collados de la Sagra' town in Don Fadrique, Granada.”

“This how the Palentina Mountain shines,” wrote Somos Palencia from the northwest region of Castile and León. “Beautiful photograph taken by Darius Saia in the reservoir of Requejada Palencia.”

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WEATHER

Denmark records deepest snow level for 13 years

Blizzards in Denmark this week have resulted in the greatest depth of snow measured in the country for 13 years.

Denmark records deepest snow level for 13 years

A half-metre of snow, measured at Hald near East Jutland town Randers, is the deepest to have occurred in Denmark since January 2011, national meteorological agency DMI said.

The measurement was taken by the weather agency at 8am on Thursday.

Around 20-30 centimetres of snow was on the ground across most of northern and eastern Jutland by Thursday, as blizzards peaked resulting in significant disruptions to traffic and transport.

A much greater volume of snow fell in 2011, however, when over 100 centimetres fell on Baltic Sea island Bornholm during a post-Christmas blizzard, which saw as much as 135 centimetres on Bornholm at the end of December 2010.

READ ALSO: Denmark’s January storms could be fourth extreme weather event in three months

With snowfall at its heaviest for over a decade, Wednesday saw a new rainfall record. The 59 millimetres which fell at Svendborg on the island of Funen was the most for a January day in Denmark since 1886. Some 9 weather stations across Funen and Bornholm measured over 50cm of rain.

DMI said that the severe weather now looks to have peaked.

“We do not expect any more weather records to be set in the next 24 hours. But we are looking at some very cold upcoming days,” DMI meteorologist and press spokesperson Herdis Damberg told news wire Ritzau.

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