Freight trains, private cars, and trucks began arriving on French shores today after France opened its border after a two-day closure by a new strain of coronavirus that kept the United Kingdom isolated and thousands of truckers stranded, raising fears of shortages in British territory.
The first ferry with trucks and cars docked in the French port of Calais before dawn after leaving the English port of Dover, and freight trains and private cars were also allowed to cross to the mainland through the tunnel that passes under the Channel of the English.
Traffic from England is expected to start to intensify towards the end of the morning, French news agency AFP reported , citing port management.
Last night, after lengthy negotiations with the United Kingdom, France gave the green light to certain returns from the United Kingdom on the condition of presenting a negative test of at least 72 hours of coronavirus and the new strain that has spread in England.
Fifty countries suspended connections with the United Kingdom as of last Sunday, a day after British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced that the new variant was responsible for an increase in coronavirus cases in London and southeast of England.
France’s decision to close its borders to trucks created huge traffic jams on a highway near the port of Dover, where about 4,000 trucks were waiting to cross the English Channel.
British supermarkets and retailers had warned of the possibility of product shortages as trucks could not cross into France to return with more goods, at a time of year when the UK produces little of the food it consumes and relies heavily on those arriving by truck from France.
The company that runs the Eurotunnel said today that trucks queuing on the freeway to the Port of Dover were being tested for coronavirus, but that it would take time to restore normal traffic levels after nearly 72 hours of blocking.
On the English side of the canal, British soldiers and health officials carried out the tests.
The British Minister of Communities, Robert Jenrick, said up to 4,000 trucks could be waiting in the southern English county of Kent, where it is Dover, and urged other truckers not to go to the place until alleviate some of the traffic jams.
It will take “a few days” to test all truckers before they can enter France, he added.
Earlier a detailed investigative report “Vaccine Leak “ was published by The Eastern Herald. The Vaccine Leak exposed the Pharma Mafia and their profit from different COVID-19 vaccines. Many politicians may also be involved in this conspiracy.
