High winds cause five deaths in south Poland

Five people were killed by falling trees as strong winds battered southern Poland on Monday, reaching a speed of 155 km (96 miles) an hour in the highest parts of the Tatra mountains.

In the town of Rabka-Zdroj, two adults and a child died after a tree crushed them, firefighters said. In Zakopane, a popular Tatra resort, a 23-year old woman and nine-year-old boy died in similar circumstances.

Firefighters intervened 140 times on Monday morning to remove trees blocking roads and help owners of houses with destroyed roofs, local media said.

The winds followed three days of unusually warm weather.

On March 30, temperatures reached a new historic record for that month, rising to 26.4 degrees Celsius in the southern town of Tarnow.