Finland snowstorm leaves tens of thousands without power

Up to 80,000 households in Finland lost power Thursday, and traffic was disrupted as the country's first major snowstorm of the season brought strong winds, the Finnish Meteorological Institute said.

Storm 'Jari' arrived in Finland on Wednesday, with Thursday winds reaching up to 25 meters (82 feet) per second, along with heavy snow and rainfall across the Nordic country.

The severe weather caused up to 80,000 households to lose power overnight, though electricity had been restored to many by Thursday morning.

Some 49,000 people were still without power midday Thursday.

"The storm is currently strongest in southern and western Finland and northern parts of the Sea of Bothnia," Jani Parviainen of the Finnish Meteorological Institute said.

Describing the widespread power outages as "remarkable," Parviainen said Jari was "one of the strongest storms in a few years."

Poor weather conditions led to several road accidents and damage to forests.

Fallen trees disrupted rail traffic, with the national railway company VR urging passengers to "be prepared for delays and possible cancellations" Thursday.

Several flights were canceled or delayed at Helsinki Airport, and ferries arriving in the capital struggled to dock due to rough seas and unusually high sea levels.

"The winds are expected to weaken in all of Finland in the next 24 hours," Parviainen said.