Dover and Brexit
Christmas Eve and Dover saw severe disruptions.
Thousands of lorries in Kent heading for the Port of Dover were parked at Manston Airport and along the M20 motorway with Operation Stack & Brock activated due to the sudden 48 hour closure of France’s border (in light of a new strain of Covid-19) with the UK starting on the 20th December.
By Boxing Day Manston Airport was clear with 8,000 lorries making the crossing to France via the Eurotunnel & Port of Dover with the remaining estimated backlog of 1,600 lorries crossing shortly after.
New Years day and Dover was deserted.
On an assignment (on the 2nd) for Helsingin Sanomat we watched from a clifftop above the port as just 3 cars, 1 van & 8 lorries disembarked and 7 cars & 8 lorries embarked on an early morning DFDS ferry bound for Calais. The Brexit chaos that some had predicted would happen at Dover in the first few days after the UK left the EU at 11pm on the 31st December did not transpire. It may yet.
