Luckless drivers spent big day in Yule logjam
THOUSANDS of lorry drivers were forced to give up on dreams of being home for Christmas as they remained stranded in Kent yesterday.
It was hoped the huge logjam of truckers waiting to travel to France could be cleared by the end of today after more than 10,000 were tested for Covid-19.
France had banned all travel across the Channel on Sunday night after the emergence of a more infectious mutant strain of coronavirus in the UK.
The ban came to an end on Tuesday after French president Emmanuel Macron agreed truckers could start crossing if they test negative for Covid-19. As of yesterday afternoon 4,500 lorries had crossed into France on ferries from Dover or via the Channel Tunnel, with thousands more set to cross last night and today.
Of the more than 10,000 tested by last night, just 24 were positive. The French ban had left UK ministers facing the huge logistical task of administering thousands of rapid roadside tests to clear the blockage and prevent food shortages from next week. Around 4,000 truckers had been forced to park up at disused Manston airport, with thousands others held up on the M20.
A further 800 soldiers were sent to Kent yesterday to help perform tests and distribute food, bringing the overall military presence there to 1,100.
Soldiers carried out more than 6,200 of the 10,000 tests since Wednesday, with NHS Test and Trace staff doing the rest.
Transport Secretary Grant Shapps also brokered a deal for ferries to continue transporting lorries yesterday and today.
Mr Shapps said last night: ‘The British
Army is again showing why it is worldclass, ramping up testing and feeding hauliers stranded by the Covid restrictions, while helping oversee the operation in Kent.
‘But let’s not forget the tireless effort of the police, civilian testers, council planners and port and ferry workers.
‘These thousands of people – military and civilians – have given up their Christmas to help drivers separated from their loved ones through no fault of their own. They have created a mass testing and logistics system in days from a standing start after a ban on cross-Channel traffic was imposed with no warning. They are a credit to our country.’
Armed Forces minister James Heappey said of the soldiers: ‘Their selfless commitment to our nation – foregoing Christmas with their families – is awe-inspiring and we are enormously grateful.’