CATERERS are being sought who will be able to provide food at short notice to truckers waiting for Felixstowe port to re-open when high winds close the dock.

CATERERS are being sought who will be able to provide food at short notice to truckers waiting for Felixstowe port to re-open when high winds close the dock.

Suffolk Coastal council has appealed for mobile caterers who would like to serve Operation Stack to come forward.

From March 6, when the port is closed due to winds, lorries will be parked up on the old A45 at Levington.

The scheme - a temporary solution following problems of congestion caused by the current situation where lorries park on the A14 at Felixstowe - has been put together by the council, port officials, Suffolk County Council, Highways Agency and police.

“Our partners' preference has been to make use of the old A45 and we have now sorted out nearly all the issues that will help this scheme go successfully, but we now want to find someone who can cater for the drivers in these emergency situations,” said Suffolk Coastal deputy leader Andy Smith.

“Ideally we are looking for two mobile catering vans that can be in place on site at relatively short notice.

“The council would like to establish a list of approved caters who can be called on when needed.

“The catering is the final piece in the jigsaw, with all the other basic facilities already lined up to make the old A45 a much more acceptable location.

“Mobile toilets are ready to go in place, and additional litter bins and temporary lighting will be installed.”

The old A45 should be able to safely cater for up to 280 articulated lorries and their drivers.

The port is forced to close when winds reach 45mph because it is then too dangerous for the high-rise quayside cranes to load and unload ships, or for activities in the container storage parks.

Mobile caterers should e-mail foodsafetyteam@suffolkcoastal.gov.uk or call the team on 01394 444357 by February 29.

Is Levington the best place for the lorries to park or should the port provide off-road sites? Write to Your Letters, Evening Star, 30 Lower Brook Street, Ipswich, IP4 1AN, or e-mail EveningStarLetters@eveningstar.co.uk