Now snow causes chaos in SPAIN while 24 are killed in Arctic conditions sweeping Europe 

• A total of 24 deaths across Europe have been linked to the freezing weather currently gripping the continent
• Woman in her 90s found dead near French retirement home while 83-year-old found in the streets in Romania
• School transport was cancelled in Catalonia, Spain, on Wednesday as snow was forecast across the region
• Mediterranean islands of Corsica and Capri saw snow fall overnight on Tuesday, as did the south of France

At least 24 people have died across Europe as the continent remains in the grip of a Siberian cold snap that has seen snow fall in Spain and southern France.

A woman in her 90s has been found dead in the snow at the gate of her retirement home in France while an 83-year-old in Romania was found buried under a drift in the streets.

In total nine people have died in Poland, four in France, five in Lithuania, three in the Czech Republic, two in Romania and one in Italy.

Cities across the continent have been providing emergency shelter and relief to rough sleepers who have accounted for most of the deaths as temperatures fell as low as -24C in parts of Germany and -29C in Estonia.

Bilbao, Barcelona, Santander and San Sebastian in Spain all awoke to heavy flurries of snow on Wednesday as much of the northern part of the country suffered under an amber weather warning.

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Meanwhile Montpellier in southern France also saw its beaches covered with snow with even the Mediterranean islands of Corsica and Capri getting a dusting.  

The frigid weather was set to continue Wednesday, with temperatures down to -12C expected in northern France and -6C in the usually mild south.

More snow was forecast for Spain, including Catalonia where school transport has been cancelled. Classes have also been suspended in the Canary Islands which is being lashed by powerful winds. 

In Belgium, towns including Etterbeek, Verviers and Charleroi have resorted to ordering police to detain homeless people if they refuse to go to shelters.

The Red Cross, which has set up emergency teams across Europe, urged people to keep an eye on neighbours and relatives.

'Just knocking on someone's door to check they have everything they need can make a huge difference. It could even be the difference between life and death,' it said.

The charity also issued public appeals for 10,000 blankets in France, where about 50 local officials in the Paris region have vowed to spend Tuesday night outdoors to call attention to the plight of those with nowhere to sleep.

'The point is not to stage a show, but to denounce a system that isn't working,' said Mama Sy, a deputy mayor in the Paris suburb of Etampes.

Paris authorities counted 3,000 rough-sleepers in the city's first-ever homeless census this month, warning it was likely significantly underestimated. 

In England, where heavy snow was dumped on London Tuesday, tabloids have dubbed the snap 'the Beast from the East', while the Dutch are calling it the 'Siberian bear' and Swedes the 'snow cannon'.

British Airways cancelled roughly 60 flights in and out of London Heathrow airport.

The Met Office forecaster said rural communities could be cut off for days by snowdrifts, warning of 'long interruptions to power supplies and other services such as telephone and mobile phone networks.'

Some of the iciest conditions were reported in Italy, where many schools and daycare centres were closed, to the consternation of parents already preparing for closures next week linked to this weekend's general election.

Italians' anger was also growing over nationwide disruptions to rail services as a lack of defrosting equipment on the tracks meant workers having to clear snow and ice by hand.

In Naples, the airport was closed early Tuesday and bus services in the city halted because of ice, though the weather was getting warmer in Rome, where schools were expected to reopen Wednesday.

A driver in Turin got a fright when an ice shard broke off from an overhead bridge and shattered his windshield - though he managed to keep control of his vehicle.

Russia's Gazprom, a major gas supplier to Europe, said it had sent record exports to the continent over the past six days, peaking at 667 million cubic metres (23.6 billion cubic feet) on Monday as people turned up their thermostats.