One person has been killed and several injured in accidents involving trees as storm Ciarán batters the Dutch coast with winds of at least 104 kph.

In Venray in Limburg one person died when they were crushed by a tree, local media reported. The emergency services had difficulty accessing the scene because of the risk that more trees would blow over.

In Limburg, two people were injured when a tree fell on their car on the A79 near Meerssen. Both were taken to hospital. In The Hague, a woman was hit by a tree as she crossed a road on a zebra crossing. She too has been taken to hospital.

In Apeldoorn, a woman out on her bike was also hit by a tree. Police have not said how seriously she was injured.

A tree hit four cars on the N65 near Berkel-Enschot causing “chaos”, police said. The cars are all seriously damaged but all but one of the six passengers escaped with minor injuries.

Weather forecasters had warned that trees are likely to blow over in the strong winds because they are still in leaf due to the late autumn.

KLM has cancelled hundreds of flights and some schools in Noord and Zuid-Holland have also closed their doors in coastal areas. So far there has been little impact on train services, railway company NS said.

Ciarán is the fourth official storm in the Netherlands this year and the second this autumn.

Meanwhile, the national “cycling against the wind” championships have been cancelled. The event was due to take place on the Oosterscheldekering sluice in Zeeland because the wind was too strong.

The event was also cancelled in 2020, because of storm Ciarán, broadcaster NOS reported.