Ferry berths in Terminal 3 and Terminal 5 at Holyhead Port are set to remain closed until January 15 at the earliest.
The port has been shut since December 7 due to damage caused by Storm Darragh with all ferry services between Dublin Port and Holyhead in Wales suspended. It was hoped the port would be able to reopen before Christmas, but due to the scale of the damage, it will now be at least the middle of January before services resume.
A spokeswoman for Holyhead Port told Dublin Live: "We are now able to provide an update on the current closure of the Terminal 3 and Terminal 5 ferry berths at Holyhead Port.
"Regrettably, both terminals will need to remain closed until Wednesday 15th January 2025 at the earliest. Our current priority is to establish when Terminal 5 can be re-opened safely, to resume ferry services.
"This follows two incidents affecting the Terminal 3 berth on Friday 6th December and Saturday 7th December, resulting in part of the structure collapsing and rendering it unusable. Given the scale of the damage, it has been necessary to perform underwater inspections of the structural integrity of the adjacent Terminal 3 and Terminal 5 berths, which could only commence once Storm Darragh had passed, early last Tuesday (10th) morning.
"Whilst we are still assessing the full extent of the damage, we are taking the decision now to keep the ferry berths closed until 15th January at the earliest to provide certainty for passengers, freight customers and ferry operators and allow them to make alternative arrangements ahead of one of the busiest times of the year.
"We understand the closure of the ferry terminals has had a significant impact on trade, passengers and port customers. We are sorry for the disruption this has caused. The safety of our colleagues and customers is our first priority and we will only permit ferry services to recommence once we are sure it is safe to do so. "
Irish Ferries confirmed they have cancelled all sailings on the route until the middle of January. They said: "We regret to advise that due to the ongoing closure of Holyhead Port, Irish Ferries has cancelled all sailings on the Holyhead/Dublin route, up to and including 15 January 2025.
"We are currently contacting customers booked to travel on the route in date order to outline options available to them, including sailing on the Rosslare-Pembroke route, where we have added more space. We are also working with UK ports with a view to adding further sailings to/from Ireland."
Stena Line said: "Stena Line has been working hard to provide alternative travel arrangements for customers during the busy festive period. Customers are currently being contacted and affected passengers are advised to amend their booking online free of charge or through the Contact Centre on 0344 770 7070 (UK)/ + 353 1 907 5555 (ROI).
"Stena Line is offering sailings for passengers and freight from Dublin to ports in Birkenhead and Fishguard. In addition, a new freight route from Dublin to Heysham has been added to assist continuity of trade flows. The company has also added additional sailings on the Belfast – Cairnryan route this weekend. Currently there is limited availability on the Belfast – Liverpool and Rosslare – Fishguard routes.
"Stena Line would like to apologise for the inconvenience caused and assure customers that the company is doing everything in its power to mitigate the effects of the closure on passenger and freight traffic."
Meanwhile, An Post have said that all packages received into its depots by December 21 will be delivered in time for Christmas. Of the backlog that grew at Holyhead due to the closure, all but 16,000 of the 500,000 affected parcels have been received, as of Monday December 16.
They said: "All parcels received into An Post hubs are being processed and delivered immediately and we will continue to support all our Irish and international ecommerce customers to find delivery solutions. These large hubs have the latest technology, equipment and additional Christmas staff to meet this challenge and to deal with parcels arriving by air, as well as large volumes of domestic parcels being posted by Irish brands and personal customers.
"An Post will deliver all parcels received into its hubs by December 21, in time for Christmas. All An Post collection, sorting, driving, delivery, Post Office and support staff are working around the clock, as are 1400 Christmas Casual workers."
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