Firefighters from Lincolnshire scale mountain in FULL KIT for charity

The firefighters reach the summit of Mount Snowdon in their full kit. Pictured, from left, is Ollie Baldham, Ben Gleadhill, Daniel Cheetham, Charlie O'Neil and Sam Newlyn.

The colossal effort to scale the 3,560ft-high Mount Snowdon on Friday was made by Lincs Fire and Rescue crew members Ben Gleadhill from Boston, Ollie Baldham and Daniel Cheetham from Louth, Charlie O’Neil from Sleaford, and Sam Newlyn from Waddington.

The five took on the epic challenge wearing their cumbersome and heavy firefighting kits to raise money for the Firefighters’ Charity.

“We all managed to do the climb in just under 3.5 hours despite the wind and rain,” said Ben.

The team pictured at the base of the mountain before their climb. From left: Charlie, Ollie, Ben, Sam and Daniel Images supplied.

“The rain made the kits very heavy, which we didn’t realise how heavy it had become until the top when we took our stuff off and had a warm drink.

“We spoke a lot to different people on the way up and bumped into a fair few fellow firefighters from all over the country.”

Ben said the worst thing about the climb was the ‘lack of phone signal’ - and the windy weather blowing away one of the team’s tents at the base of the mountain, resulting in them having an uncomfortable night’s sleep in a van before the climb.

“We raised a total of £880, with people donating while we were climbing,” Ben added. “We received great support from walkers on the mountain - and would like to thank them and our families and friends for all the support throughout.”

To support Ben and the team’s effort, visit www.justgiving.com/fundraising/ben-gleadhill