For the past 25 years, Harold Hastie has braved gale-force winds and turbulent seas as a coastguard on Islay, a beautiful and rugged outcrop on the west coast of Scotland. Stricken trawlermen, stranded cattle and struggling swimmers all have reason to be grateful for the efforts of Mr Hastie, a 47 year old scallop fisherman who doubles as an invaluable rescue worker.

"I have always had a respect for the sea, and I want to help people," says Mr Hastie, explaining what drives him to combine his two vocations. He is part of a team of five coastguards operating out of Port Ellen, all of whom are on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The island, which is famed for the whisky produced by its eight distilleries, has around 4,000 inhabitants, but the numbers swell in the summer, so Mr Hastie can expect many call-outs between June and September.

Mr Hastie, who relies on his Toyota Hilux for his rescue work (and to haul his scallops back from the ocean), has been committed to the marque since the early eighties when he took a Hilux on a rigorous test drive along a stretch of fields and sand dunes. He has since owned seven Toyota vehicles, including a Carina E, a Corolla and a Hiace. His coastguard crew have recently put in an order for a further four Hilux vehicles, to help them to carry out their work.

"We once had to race out to the scene of an aeroplane crash on the island, but all the other rescue vehicles became stuck in bogs and could not get out," he said. "Only my Hilux, with a doctor and rescue equipment on board, managed to get through to help the victims. We have now decided to replace our remaining Land Rovers with the Hilux, which are superb off-road vehicles. They have excellent ground clearance, and are perfect for the wild terrain we have here."

As a key part of the local coastal rescue team, Mr Hastie is also familiar with both the local 57 ft, 7 class lifeboat and the Sea King rescue helicopter.

"A common problem results from livestock wandering over the edge of clifftops and becoming stuck half way down the side," he said. "We have to use the helicopter to winch them back up again with great difficulty." He has spread the word about the merits of Toyota. "My son has developed my passion for off roading and is now a very skilled driver. At the moment our family car is a Carina E, which we find very good on the road as well as being very comfortable. "As well as his many achievements in the rough seas around Islay's coast, Mr Hastie is the proud owner of a long service medal, awarded after he attained 20 years in the service. "They had it specially pressed and sent up to me," he said. "I will be entitled to another one if I make it to 30 years. I am half way there now, so I definitely want to go on until then. My predecessor did 36 years - it would be nice to match that."