Coastguard delivers bottled water to motorists stranded at Port of Dover amid EU passport chaos
Britain's coastguard is handing out bottles of water to motorists caught up in queues at the Port of Dover during the bank holiday weekend, GB News understands.
Drivers attempting to catch a ferry from Kent were facing delays of almost 5 hours, forcing French border officials to drop the European Union's new entry-exit system (EES).
To try and help delayed passengers from fainting in 28C heat, the coastguard has been deployed to hand out bottled water to those waiting to leave Britain.
The coastguard confirmed to GB News they are assisting the local resilience forum at Dover.
The EES system requires people from non-EU countries to have their fingerprints registered and their photograph taken to enter the Schengen area.
Port officials said the full system was not running for cars and it was still awaiting delivery of technology, forcing French officials to create manual traveller records.
Travel expert Simon Calder told the People's Channel: “First contact with the entry-exit system at the first peak getaway since the rollout was sort of completed.
“It's not going particularly well.
“So it's a mess. The entire travel industry, from the Port of Dover to Michael O'Leary, the boss of Ryanair, is demanding that the system be relaxed.
“Speaking to the police here, while you might be seeing the trucks actually seem to be moving faster than the motorists and families heading away.
“That's because they've already been queuing about four or five miles back along the A20. So it's a bit of a muddle.
Explaining the issues, Mr Calder said: “The entry-exit system is a new digital border scheme that was introduced by the European Union for all third-country nationals.
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“It requires you to have your biometrics checked on the first crossing of a Schengen Area frontier.
“You should have your four right fingers on your right hand taken and a facial biometric on subsequent trips.“
"However, here at the Port of Dover, the checks are made before you get on a boat.
“Unfortunately, while there is a £40million system ready to go with all those kiosks that you've seen for motorists heading off on their half-term breaks due to French IT problems, it is not actually working yet.”
“If you are heading for continental Europe, it is going to be a long wait,” Mr Calder warned.
“I'm sorry to say, but it's not a great picture.”
A spokesman for the Port of Dover confirmed the EES has been suspended, stating: “Following the port’s active escalation of the challenging situation in Dover with the relevant border authorities, we are pleased that Police aux Frontières (PAF) have responded positively by invoking the article nine clause of the EES regulations.
“While conventional border checks will still be undertaken, this will now enable PAF to significantly reduce the border processing time.
“We will be working with PAF and all our partners to get customers into and through the port as swiftly as possible and keep the roads clear for our local community.”
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