Hamburg - The first snow of the autumn blanketed parts of central and southern Germany on Thursday, leading to power outages and numerous accidents on slippery roads.

A 29-centimetre layer of snow covered the Zollernalb district of the south-west state of Baden-Wuerttemberg, where police closed roads blocked by trees that collapsed under the weight of the snow.

Hundreds of homes in the city of Reutlingen were without power after electricity pylons were brought down in the abrupt change of weather.

Dozens of accidents occurred in the eastern state of Thuringia, where motorists were taken by surprise by the heavy snowfall. The A9 motorway to Berlin was closed for several hours after an auto transporter skidded into the central divider and lost part of its load.

In the northern state of Schleswig-Holstein, a woman driver died after her car skidded on an icy road and crashed into an oncoming sports utility vehicle.

Meteorologists said the wintery conditions would last only briefly, with dry and warmer weather predicted over the next few days. (dpa)