Airport closures throw travel plans of thousands into disarray

THERE ARE new concerns about Christmas travel after Dublin airport was forced to close in heavy snowfall last night.

As forecasters said the snow and ice was set to continue until Christmas Eve, hundreds of stranded passengers spent a third night in Shannon airport after flights were grounded when Heathrow airport closed on Saturday. Passengers have been strongly advised to consult with their airline before travelling to the airport because of knock-on delays.

Ryanair put on a number of extra flights in an attempt to clear the backlog yesterday but Aer Arann had to cancel a number of its services.

Met Éireann said some counties on the east coast and in Munster may experience snow again today as a further cold weather system moves across the Irish Sea.

Primary roads are expected to remain passable for those travelling home for Christmas with the National Roads Authority saying that some 2,000 tonnes of salt are to be used to grit principal roads nightly.

Council staff will also be treating local roads using grit and have made arrangements with the Irish Farmers’ Association and Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers Association to supply grit stockpiles for community use.

Forecaster Pat Clarke told a meeting of the Government’s severe weather taskforce yesterday that the thaw could pose problems for motorists. “If there is a partial thaw, conditions could still be very icy, even if the temperature in your car says it’s positive. So that should be watched out for.”

The Irish Coast Guard helicopter was also affected by the snow. When responding to a request from the Belfast Coast Guard for help with an incident on a trawler off Kilkeel, the helicopter was forced to turn back due to bad weather conditions. The crew of the trawler were brought to safety with the aid of a lifeboat.

Stena Line said it had experienced a “substantial” increase in passengers travelling on its Irish Sea routes over the last few days.

On the roads, Bus Éireann said most of its services were expected to be running, but passengers were asked to check in advance, particularly on routes affected by adverse weather.

Commuters in Dublin last night reported two-hour delays on routes of just a few kilometres. Shoppers at Dundrum Town Centre reported two-hour delays leaving the centre.

As schools continue to be affected, groups representing teachers, principals and boards of management have called for a review of the national school calendar to give schools flexibility to make up lost days.

The Irish Primary Principals Network said that if schools can make up the lost days, then they should.

A spokesman said: “A minority of schools have lost a significant numbers of days and their principals find themselves in a difficult situation. As professionals, they want to do the right thing for the children in their schools, but they find themselves restricted by the standardised school year.”

The Garda has advised those travelling to use primary routes whenever possible.

Warmer weather is expected to spread over the country from Friday with temperatures forecast to rise to between 8 and 10 degrees by St Stephen’s Day.