The Port of Dover declares critical incident as huge delays leave travelling Yorkshire students 'without food or water'

Passengers were left stranded within holding areas for hours on Friday evening due to the lengthy delays.

Ferry operators DFDS Seaways and P&O Ferries also reported delays to ferry and coach services.

A spokesperson for the port said: "Our present high volumes, combined with extended processing at border controls, has resulted in lengthy delays for coach passengers.

"We apologise for the inconvenience these delays may have caused to passenger journeys and thank all port users for their patience at this time.”

A group of students from the University of Leeds were caught up in the delays.

"They were in a holding pen for hours with access to only two overflowing porta loos and no access to water or food”, a source told The Yorkshire Post.

“They got on a 6am ferry and now have a ten hour bus journey in France.”

In social media updates on Friday, P&O Ferries apologised for the wait times.

The company announced an extra sailing to try and clear the backlog and blamed the French border controls for delays.

DFDS Seaways said delays of up to two hours were caused by "winds in the Channel".

"We know it's really busy today and we want you to know that we are doing all we can to get all customers on their way as quickly as possible”, the company announced.

"We know this isn't the ideal start to your trip but our teams are ready to welcome you onboard once checked in."