A section of the Holyhead ferry port, shut down due to damage from Storm Darragh over Christmas, is set to reopen next month. Stena Line, which owns the vital Anglesey port in North Wales, has announced plans to reopen the Terminal 5 berth come January 16, weather permitting.
The date marks a turnaround after the havoc wreaked during the festive season.
But Terminal 3’s fate remains uncertain with no reopening schedule revealed. There is a glimmer of hope as a company statement confirmed on Monday: “After diligent assessments and planning, we can now confirm that the timeline for reopening the Holyhead Terminal 5 ferry berth by January 16 2025 remains achievable. This prediction is subject to reasonable weather conditions, and we will provide further updates as our progress continues.”
For those traversing the Irish Sea, it’s been a bruising period; ferries connecting Dublin with Holyhead were all cancelled, upending the travel plans of thousands over Christmas.
When Storm Darragh descended hit on weekend of December 6-7, Terminal 3 took a significant beating – incidents led to a collapsed structure, deeming it out of action, reports the Irish Mirror.
The destruction seemed even grimmer than first believed, prompting the Port’s spokesperson to reveal that checks had to dive below surface-level, inspecting the structural soundness of both Terminal 3 and Terminal 5.
Earlier this month, Taoiseach Simon Harris underscored increasing worries as the “seriousness” of the damage grew “more apparent as the days go by”.
Stena Line has announced alternative routes for travellers in light of the reopening of Terminal 5 berth. They said: “Up until the reopening of the Terminal 5 berth, alternative routes for travel include Birkenhead to Dublin (motorists only), Fishguard to Dublin, Fishguard to Rosslare, Cairnryan to Belfast and Liverpool to Belfast.”
Meanwhile, a spokesperson for Irish Ferries said: “With clarity now on the situation for the coming weeks, Irish Ferries will continue to review what further route measures are required to ensure the needs of its passenger and freight customers are met.”
They added: “With a phased re-opening plan of Holyhead port that involves more limited berth availability, Irish Ferries has agreed a timetable with the other operator that will allow Irish Ferries to operate full schedules into Terminal 5.”
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