The first woman to take on a full time firefighting role in Kelowna starts Monday.

Until the yet-to-be named woman starts work next week, the number of women employed locally as structural firefighters sits at zero, though there are two paid-on-call firefighters. There are also two women working as firefighters at the airport, which isn91裸聊视频檛 the city91裸聊视频檚 jurisdiction.

Only 30 of 500 candidates that apply for full-time firefighter roles are women, said Rick Euper, fire line safety fire inspector.

It91裸聊视频檚 not too far off the picture, nationally. A report in 2015 indicated that less than four per cent of Canada91裸聊视频檚 firefighters are women.Fire prevention officer Gayanne Pacholzuk said there is a stigma around firefighting that may prevent women from applying for jobs in the field.

91裸聊视频淚 think the days are gone of being the fastest and the strongest person out there. There91裸聊视频檚 a lot more to firefighting rather than just the brawn anymore,91裸聊视频� she said.

91裸聊视频淚 am the biggest advocate for women in the fire service and I tell these young girls 91裸聊视频榣ook, you just have to be fit91裸聊视频�91裸聊视频� it doesn91裸聊视频檛 mean I have to lift (people) over our shoulders like in the old days.91裸聊视频�

Camps like Camp Ignite, a youth mentorship program for girls, is run by female firefighters in the Lower Mainland focuses on enticing young women into the firefighting service, she said.

In her more than 20 years in the firefighting service, part of which was served as a firefighter at Kelowna91裸聊视频檚 airport, she said she never face discrimination.

At an annual firefighting bootcamp that involved local highschool students, there were some who showed that there was an appetite Rutland Senior Secondary student Carlie Dudych hopes to change that number.

91裸聊视频淚 always found it very interesting, I love helping people91裸聊视频� it91裸聊视频檚 definitely something I want to do,91裸聊视频� she said. 91裸聊视频淚 love being hands on.91裸聊视频�

Dudych is a junior on-call firefighter with the Joe Rich department and said it was exciting to hear the news of a new female firefighter in Kelowna.

She sharpened her skills at the annual firefighter boot camp, which took place Wednesday, April 18 at Station 1 on Enterprise Way. Around 75 Grade 9 to 12 students from across the district, a quarter of them were girls, were given the opportunity to carry a firehose, drag a dummy, scramble a ladder on one of the firetrucks and haul a hose up a three-storey building.

91裸聊视频淲e just don91裸聊视频檛 see it here, they91裸聊视频檙e my family, they91裸聊视频檙e my friends.91裸聊视频�

91裸聊视频淚f they can pass the physical exams and the testing, they91裸聊视频檙e as good as anyone else,91裸聊视频� Euper said.

To report a typo, email: edit@kelownacapnews.com.

carli.berry@kelownacapnews.com
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