Freeze Kills Dozens In Eastern Europe

Central and Eastern Europe have been badly affected by severely cold weather in recent days.

Heavy snow and a severe cold snap are reported to have killed dozens of people across Eastern Europe.

Ukraine's Emergency Situations Ministry said 18 people have died of hypothermia in recent days, and nearly 500 people have sought medical help for frostbite and hypothermia.

At least 10 people are reported to have frozen to death in Poland since January 27, as temperatures reached minus 26 Celsius.

In central Serbia, three people have died and two more are missing, while 14 municipalities have declared a state of emergency.

In Bulgaria, a 57-year-old man froze to death in a northwestern village and an emergency was declared in 25 of the country's 28 districts.

In the Czech Republic, a 26-year-old man was found frozen to death in a field near the eastern town of Opava.

Compiled from agency reports