As the year draws to a close, we look back at the top stories in Meirionnydd and Dwyfor in 2018.

A year in which a Llyn schoolgirl travelled to America for groundbreaking treatment, and MMA fighter Danny Williams became European champion.January• A pregnant mother praised a helicopter crew which battled its way through 60mph winds to rush her to hospital after fears she had gone into labour prematurely.Whilst Storm Eleanor began to hit the coastline, with gusts of up to 60mph, hammering rain and massive waves, Coastguard Helicopter Rescue 936 made its way down from its base in Caernarfon to Katie Edwards in Tywyn and transferred her to a specialist neonatal unit in Ysbyty Glan Clwyd in good time. Fortunately, Katie, who was three months premature at the time, did not go into labour.• Several communities were left cut-off after a bus company lost its operating licence and several services throughout Gwynedd were halted at the start of the new year. Services returned slowly to more rural parts of the county with alternative bus operators taking over the routes, but not before severe disruption was caused to the people of Meirionnydd and Arfon/Dwyfor.• A horror crash on the A487 near Gellilydan claimed the lives of a six-month-old baby and her aunty and also left the baby’s mother in hospital for several weeks.Baby Mili Wyn Ginniver from Blaenau Ffestiniog and her aunty Anna Williams from Penrhyndeudraeth died in the crash in early January.The deaths shocked communities across Gwynedd and politicians have since pushed for safety improvements to be made along the stretch of road.February• Yws Gwynedd and his band took home a clutch of awards at the 2018 Welsh language music awards, Gwobrau’r Selar.The musician, who hails originally from Blaenau Ffestiniog, picked up four awards on the night – Best Album for his second LP, Anrheoli, released in April; Best Music Video (Drwy Dy Lygid Di); Best Song (Drwy Dy Lygid Di) and Best Band • A Porthmadog school adopted the help of a bird of prey to stop ‘aggressive seagulls’ attacking its pupils.A falcon and a hawk were drafted in after Ysgol Eifion Wyn was ‘put in lockdown’ by the nuisance gulls in a scene described as being ‘reminiscent of the Hitchcock film, The Birds’.• Theatr Ardudwy was forced to close its doors for good due to safety fears.The iconic Harlech building was forced to close over health and safety concerns, bringing to an end cinema and live performances in the town for the foreseeable future.The theatre board has been looking at ways to repair the building and reopen, but the doors remain closed for the foreseeable.March• A young family were been left homeless after a hoverboard burst into flames causing a house fire in Porthmadog.Mother-of-four Tammy Humphreys, 29, was left heartbroken after her Cartrefi Cymunedol Gwynedd property on the Pensyflog estate in Porthmadog was ravaged by fire and smoke, leaving the property uninhabitable.Fortunately, nobody was injured in the blaze, but it was thought it would take months to repair the damage.• Ysgol Ardudwy was forced to close its doors after 90mph winds tore a large section of the school’s roof off.Snow flurries and ferocious winds caused havoc throughout the region but the damage left a lingering problem for school children in Harlech, with some spending weeks in alternative classrooms in community centres and village halls as they prepared for their exams. The school reopened after Easter.• Motorists were angry after cars left abandoned due to heavy snowfall in Pwllheli were slapped with £50 parking fines.Gwynedd Council defended the decision to issue fines saying that the fines were issued the day after heavy snowfall when conditions were clearer.April• The people of Barmouth held their own marathon after a local woman who had intended to run the London Marathon had to pull out at the last minute.Instead of giving up, the local community pulled together and dozens of runners put in a shift along the promenade to cover the 26.2 miles needed to complete the challenge and raise over £2,000 for the Stroke Association.• Plans to convert the old tax office at Ty Moelwyn into a 66 bedroom hotel were first mooted in April.The company behind the scheme announced their intentions to build a new £6 million Premier Inn in Porthmadog - which would create 30 jobs - but wanted to hear the opinions of locals before pushing ahead.The plans have since been put before Gwynedd Council.• Bow the pup had a lucky escape after swallowing a needle and thread.Sharon Taylor-Booth, who was brought up in Mynytho and later Llangwnadl, rushed her pup Bow to the vets, who were stunned to learn that the sewing instrument had passed almost seamlessly through Bow’s system – and they were able to pull it out safely the other end.May• Plans to demolish a multi-million pound home and replace it with a glass-fronted three-storey property in one of the most sought-after parts of Pen Llyn were given the green light in May.Gwynedd Council refused the original plans to demolish 100-year-old ‘The Shanty’ on Benar Head in Abersoch - which was purchased for £2.2m back in 2016 - and replace it with an ultra modern home, but this decision was overturned on appeal.• A grandmother spoke of her panic after her young grandson picked up a used syringe in a local park.The incident spark fears over drug use in Porthmadog. Fortunately the child did not accidentally prick himself but local PSCO Mark Hughes confirmed that drugs were a growing concern in the town.• A popular Llyn beach that was decimated by Storm Emma re-opened in May after a giant sieve removed 50 tonnes of rubbish.Around two foot of sand was washed away by the storm and uncovered tonnes of buried rubbish, leading the National Trust - who run the beach - to close it temporarily and remove beach huts.Heavy machinery was drafted in to sift 600 tonnes of sand and remove bits of rubbish including glass - in time for the summer.JuneA Llyn schoolgirl who travelled to America for groundbreaking treatment returned home in June after being given the all-clear by doctors.Brave Evie Hughes, 7, an Ysgol Morfa Nefyn pupil, returned to Wales in June after enduring months of Proton Therapy treatment in Florida, a pioneering procedure that was not available in the UK.She was welcomed home by friends and family at a special party at The Bryncynan.• A much-disputed path in front of houses on the Mawddach Estuary was made a public right of way following a shock decision by Gwynedd Council’s planning committee.A crowd of approximately 30 residents turned up to watch the debate with the majority in favour of enforcing a footpath at Mawddach Crescent, near Arthog.The application for a public footpath had been recommended for refusal in a report put before the planning committee on Monday, 25 June but a unanimous vote by members went against the recommendation and added the footpath to the council’s definitive list.Our look back at 2018 continues with the second half of the year tomorrow