Two people have died in Sweden after a powerful winter storm swept across Nordic countries, causing travel disruptions and power outages.
The Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute issued alerts for strong winds for large parts of the northern half of the country as Storm Johannes hit.
One man in his 50s died after being struck by a tree in the Kungsberget ski resort in the country's south, local media and police reported; while regional utility company, Hemab, confirmed that one of its employees died in an accident in the field.
Tens of thousands of homes in Sweden, Norway, and Finland have been left without power. In Sweden alone, more than 40,000 homes were affected, and numerous rail services were cancelled, according to the Swedish news agency TT.
Many flights, rail, and ferry services across parts of the Nordic nations have been halted due to the storm. In Norway's Nordland region, the fire department responded to over 200 weather-related incidents, with Storm Johannes cutting power to around 23,000 homes in that region alone.
In Finland, the storm, referred to as Hannes, began to subside on Sunday morning, but over 33,000 homes were left without electricity. In one alarming incident, flights at Kittila airport were grounded after strong winds pushed a passenger jet and a smaller plane off the runway into snowbanks, although no injuries were reported.
The Swedish Transport Administration announced that many train services would remain suspended until noon on Sunday as emergency services continue to address the aftermath of the storm.
