Storm Darragh: Belfast ferry passengers stranded as ship unable to berth due to ‘adverse weather conditions’

A Cairnryan to Belfast ferry is currently stranded on the Antrim coast - unable to dock due to the weather.

Passenger Owen Nicholl boarded the ferry at 12am and is still on board over twelve hours later.

Owen says that at around 2.50am, the captain announced that the ship would be waiting in Belfast Lough for a couple of hours as the conditions were poor.

Owen said: “[The captain] said wind speeds were dangerously high so unable to come into the port. At 5.30am, he made another saying he expected it to be a few more hours. At 11.30am, he said the wind speeds have picked up again and are at 55 knots which is too high to come in.”

Owen added that his fellow passengers are still in good spirits, but that there are a lot of tired people on board.

Stena Line told the News Letter: “Due to adverse weather conditions caused by Storm Darragh, Stena Superfast VII has been unable to berth in Belfast. Passengers have been informed and are being taken care of onboard.

"The ship is currently safely sheltered on the Antrim coast. Safety is of highest priority to Stena Line and the team onboard are closely monitoring the weather conditions. The ship will berth in Belfast once conditions improve, and it is deemed safe to do so.”