Storm Ciara lashed Britain and northern continental Europe with heavy rain and wind speeds that reached more than 145 kilometers per hour (kph) in places on Sunday, forcing the cancellation of hundreds of flights, train services and sports matches.

More than 200 flood warnings were issued across Britain, which recorded a maximum wind speed of 150 kph an hour at Aberdaron in Wales. One severe flood warning was put in place in Yorkshire, northern England, where water was predicted to overflow flood defenses and potentially threaten lives.

The storm caused major disruption to transport across the region. in the Netherlands, around 240 flights to and from Amsterdam's Schiphol airport, one of Europe's busiest, were canceled as Ciara roared in off the Atlantic with gusts of up to 120 kph.

In Germany, where Ciara was named Sabine, about 180 flights to and from Frankfurt airport - about 15% of all planned flights - were axed. Lufthansa, Germany's largest carrier, said it would cancel short and long-haul flights from Munich airport on Monday until 1200 GMT and 1300 GMT, respectively.

Lufthansa's budget unit Eurowings said it had suspended flight operations at Hamburg, Berlin, Hanover, Dortmund, Duesseldorf, Cologne and Stuttgart. Meanwhile, some British domestic and international flights were also canceled, from airports including Heathrow and Gatwick.

Train services were also affected by Ciara.