Storm-hit port must be future-proofed - MP

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More investment needs to be made in Holyhead port as it remains closed following damage caused by Storm Darragh, an MP has warned.

The port is not set to reopen until Thursday at the earliest, with Ynys Mon MP Llinos Medi telling BBC Radio Wales Breakfast that "it's obvious that the [repair] work is much more intense than they expected it to be".

She said it was the second busiest in the UK and she hoped "moving forward that the port of Holyhead will be seen by both Welsh and UK government as a port that needs to be supported".

Medi said one local company had told her the closure had resulted in about 10 job losses.

Medi said the storm had shown just how strategically important the port, on Anglesey, was to the UK, Ireland and Europe.

"Things have to go wrong before anyone actually recognises the value of it," she added.

"People don't realise it's not just the inconvenience of the port being closed, it's actually having a personal impact on people and their families."

Port operator, Stena Line has apologised for the cancellation of its Holyhead sailings, adding that it was "doing everything in its power to mitigate the effects of the closure on passenger and freight traffic".

There are normally four daily ferry sailings going each way between Holyhead and Dublin, operated by Stena Line and Irish Ferries.

The closure had led Ireland's national postal service to abandon plans to use Holyhead port for Christmas deliveries.

The ongoing closure of the port comes after power returned to the remaining businesses and homes left in the dark across Wales following the storm.

Storm Darragh saw gusts of up to 93mph (150km/h) as it battered the UK.

A Welsh government spokesperson said the closure was being managed through a coordinated effort between the Port Authority, Stena Line, Irish Ferries, Welsh government, and Isle of Anglesey County Council "to ensure public safety and minimise disruption".

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