CROSSINGS BETWEEN IRELAND and Holyhead in Wales have resumed as the Welsh port finally re-opens after being shut since damage sustained during Storm Darragh.

Ferry services at Holyhead, which is owned by Stena Line, were cancelled in the lead up to Christmas and in the weeks since.

Parcel deliveries were delayed and thousands of people travelling around Christmas time were affected.

In December, Stena Line announced the port would re-open the Terminal 5 berth, subject to weather conditions, on 16 January.

That day has come and although only one of the port’s berths has reopened so far, the port says it believes it can manage the same level of activity as it had before the damage.

Ger Hyland, president of the Irish Road Haulage Association (IRHA), has said hauliers are “very relieved” to see the port operating again, though he added there are still issues that need to be resolved.

Speaking on RTÉ Radio One’s Morning Ireland, Hyland said he travelled from Dublin to Holyhead last night but the ferry’s arrival into the berth in Holyhead was delayed three hours.

“Trucks on that ferry are going to be late doing their deliveries. Trucks sitting waiting in Holyhead to go back to Ireland are going to be late arriving in Dublin. But look, it’s a start,” Hyland says.

“Hopefully it’ll stay going but it just goes to show how fickle the thing is,” he said, adding that it will be a “mess” if the port has to cancel crossings again.

He also said that the port being closed since before Christmas has caused significant financial losses for hauliers.

“If we don’t get some sort of financial aid, we are definitely a sector that’s in trouble.”

Additional reporting by Press Association