THE Princess Royal showed she was made of steely stuff yesterday during a whistle stop tour of the region.

The princess literally faced an arctic chill when she opened a £12m cold storage depot in County Durham and surprised staff when she refused to wear a protective jacket for her walkabout in a minus 28 degrees centigrade storage area.

Dressed in a green winter coat, with black accessories, the princess seemed in no hurry to get out of the freezing conditions at the Yearsley distribution centre, at Seaham's Fox Cover Industrial Estate.

She also remained unfazed when the cord she needed to pull to reveal an opening plaque also got tangled.

During her opening speech, the Princess Royal told the head of the family owned company, Harry Yearsley, that the firm's investment in the plant would bring great benefits to Seaham.

Such a storage depot formed part of an unsung sector of the food process, she said.

The princess began her visit to the region with a stop-off in Durham, where she launched a chain of shops aimed at making life easier for people with a disability.

The five shops lie at the heart of a new Home Independence Service, which provides help, advice and training to people with a physical or sensory impairment.

The princess visited one of its two specialist demonstration centres in the Abbey Day Centre, in Durham, before heading for Seaham by helicopter.

It was then off to Hartlepool to rededicate a restored lifeboat. The historic vessel, also named The Princess Royal saved the lives of 98 people during its service between 1939 and 1968.

Recently, the boat has been painstakingly restored by a team of local volunteers.

The original dedication was carried out by the late Princess Royal HRH Princess Mary in 1941.

During her visit she unveiled a plaque and met the team who carried out the work.

She told them: "I would like to say a word of thanks to the team of volunteers whose astounding devotion and hard work has brought the lifeboat back to its former glory."