Pwllheli lifeboat station has appointed its first female launch vehicle driver in its 133-year history.

Lindsay Rees joined the RNLI station two years ago, originally as a volunteer member of the shore crew.

She has since progressed to become one of the station's drivers, which ensure the lifeboat is launched and recovered when it's sent out on a shout or an exercise.

So far, Lindsay has passed her assessment to launch the D-class inshore lifeboat by using the Tooltrack vehicle.

Lindsay Rees joined Pwllheli RNLI in 2022 as a member of the shore crew and has now progressed to launch vehicle driver.

“I was brought up to respect the work that the RNLI does and volunteering for the RNLI is something I‘ve always wanted to do", she said.

"I’m proud to be giving something back to my community and making my kids proud of their Mam. I’ve enjoyed the training the RNLI has given me and look forward to continuing training for the SLARS (Shannon Launch and Recovery System), which is the large, tracked vehicle for launching and recovering the Shannon all-weather lifeboat.”

Operations restarted at the Pwllheli lifeboat station in February, after a "serious breakdown in relationships" led to its crew members being stood down in August last year.

Around two-thirds of the crew agreed to return with the RNLI launching a recruitment drive locally to attract new volunteers and the Shannon class lifeboat returning to Pwllheli in July.

Around that time, the station appointed its first female launch authority, Lyndsay Harrold, as part of a charity-wide push to bring more women into operational crew roles.

More recently, the station has appointed Anton Helm as the second helm on its inshore lifeboat after serving three years as a volunteer in Pwllheli.

Anton, who is also a volunteer crew member of the Shannon class lifeboat, said: "I’m very proud of my achievement, I’ve come a long way since joining the volunteer crew in 2021."

"Not in my wildest dreams did I predict in three years I would become a D class helm! I would like to thank my family and colleagues at the station for their support. I look forward to supporting our new crew members progress and making a difference in the local community."