AN EVESHAM family have called for more security to tackle the chaos in Calais after a nightmare 14 hour journey home to the Vale.
Anji Watson and her husband Richard, along with their two daughters aged 11 and 5, were on their way back from Disneyland Paris when they arrived in the French port to board a ferry home.
However the family were greeted with ‘traffic chaos’ as French authorities attempt to tackle the increasing number of migrants attempting to cross the Channel by breaking into the Euro Tunnel.
Striking French ferry workers also added to the delays by blockading routes to the port by setting alight tyres.
The family were due to catch their ferry at 5.15pm, having arrived in Calais at around 4pm to make sure they had enough time to spare, but after queueing for nearly four hours to move just six miles, the family missed the boat back to Dover.
“All we saw was hundreds of cars queueing up and down the motorway and on the route we needed to take,” Anji told the Observer.
“The actual route that we should have taken had been closed off by the police with no signs or information provided.”
P&O Ferries allowed anyone who missed their crossing back to the UK to catch a later ferry, however it took the family another five hours by the time they reached the port.
They eventually arrived home in Evesham 14 hours later than originally planned.
“People were getting out of their cars to go to the toilet on the side of the road and kids were crying,” she said.
“About eight police vans full of police whizzed by us, we didn’t know what was happening and we were anxious.
“I think more information should be provided both in English and French either by roadsides or by websites.
“More security is definitely needed at both the tunnel and ferry crossings,” she added.
