A powerful summer storm hit the Netherlands on Wednesday, killing at least two people, blowing trees onto houses and forcing one of Europe's busiest airports to cancel or delay hundreds of flights.
The national meteorological institute declared a code red alert in three provinces as Storm Poly hit the country with heavy rain and powerful winds.
Amsterdam Airport Schiphol said on its website that it expected “very limited air traffic will be possible” into the afternoon, leading to cancellations and delays for incoming and departing flights.
So far strong wind and poor visibility has forced the KLM Royal Dutch Airlines to cancel 207 flights.
The national railway company also halted all trains in the northern Netherlands.
One gust, on the coast west of Amsterdam, was recorded at just over 145 kilometres per hour (90 mph), the institute said.
Dutch media showed pictures of uprooted trees and wind-blown debris littering streets in Amsterdam, The Hague and the city of Haarlem as the storm barrelled through during the normally busy morning rush hour.
Videos showed trees scattered across highways, toppled on a row of houses in Haarlem and uprooted onto a tram in The Hague. One woman was killed in Haarlem when a tree fell on a car, police spokesperson Nina Moers said.
In Amsterdam, a tree fell on a houseboat moored in one of the city's historic canals. Amsterdam municipality closed parks as the storm hit the Dutch capital.
Emergency services in North Holland province, which includes the capital Amsterdam, sent a push alert to mobile phones urging people to stay indoors as the storm passed. Traffic authorities also advised motorists to avoid driving, if possible.
The storm was expected to blow northwards across the Netherlands later Wednesday and into Denmark and Germany.