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The first female firefighter training weekend in Westchester took place Saturday and Sunday afternoon in Valhalla, bringing together two dozen women from departments around Westchester and surrounding counties.
Im honestly so excited, being that its an extremely male dominated field, not even 10 percent of the fire department is female, said Ashley Roosa, 24, of the Croton Fire Department.
The weekend was a 12-hour training course and a chance for few and far between female firefighters to connect, Roosa said.
One of the inspirations of putting this weekend together was to show women they can do it and they can reach the rank of chief, their goals are realistic, said Luci Labriola-Cuffe, fire training technician at Westchester Countys Department of Emergency Services and Chief of the Armonk Fire Department.
A report from the National Volunteer Fire Council, Retention and Recruitment for the Volunteer Emergency Services, confirms Roosas experience. The study estimates women make up 4 percent, or 32,000, volunteer departments nationwide, of 800,050.
A 2008 study by the International Association of Women in Fire and Emergency Services (IAWFES) among career firefighters reports, Over decades operating with an all-male staff, many fire stations developed a fraternity house atmosphere in which sexually-oriented conversation, pornography and homophobism were common and accepted.
Anonymous reports from female firefighters show the pressure. Of the 114 career departments in 39 states surveyed by the IAWFES, 87.4 percent of women agreed they experienced different treatment because of my gender, compared to 12.4 percent of male counterparts.
Knot tying, forcible entry, building construction, hazardous materials, weapons of mass destruction, rescue methods and physical tests are all part of Westchester Countys Firefighter 1, 87-hour training. In one physical test, recruits navigate a maze in a turnout coat, bunker pants, heavy boots and a helmet.
Some of the most basic equipment firefighters wear weighs close to 100 pounds. Personal oxygen tanks, known as a Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus, weigh 75 pounds, plus axes, saws, hammers and ladders a member might carry.
Labriola-Cuffe took basic training 16 years ago, after arriving at the scene of a fire as an EMS responder, and realizing she wanted to be a firefighter. Me joining the fire department has changed my whole career, she said.
Of course you get some that question why you want to do it, but for the most part it was pretty well received, said Labriola-Cuffe. You feel like, as a woman, you have to prove yourself a little more so everyones convinced you have the knowledge and the know-how to do the job, she said.
Labriola-Cuffe said the Armonk Fire Department has women on nearly every call. In Cortlandt, Holly Haight is not only the Chief of the Verplanck Fire Department, she is also a fire inspector for the Town of Cortlandt and serves on Westchester Countys Cause and Origin Team.
The study by the IAWFES expects a 17 percent female population in career firehouses by 2020. According to the same study, less than one-quarter of 1 percent of New York Citys uniformed members are women.
My family raised me up around the firehouse, so when I turned 16 and I was old enough to be an active member, it was the coolest thing to do, said Montrose Fire Department member, Sarah Roush, 23. She said she intends on having a paid career in a fire department.
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