Only about four per cent of firefighters worldwide are women, but a B.C. summer camp is looking to change that.
Camp Ignite is a camp for young women who are interested in getting in to firefighting. Going into its 11th year, the goal of the camp is to help young women in grades 11 and 12 who might be interested in firefighting get a taste of what it鈥檚 like and learn some basic skills.
鈥淚t鈥檚 important that we represent the diversity in the communities that we serve,鈥� said Campbell River firefighter Debra Rogers, who also works as communications and correspondence coordinator for Camp Ignite. 鈥淚 think women have a lot to bring to the table. It鈥檚 not just brute strength anymore. We do a lot of medical calls, there鈥檚 cultural issues that need to be addressed that sometimes women can better address, especially in larger centres.鈥�
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鈥淚t鈥檚 important to have the diversity 鈥� whether that means women or other minority representation,鈥� she added. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 the world we live in and I think that all public service should represent that diversity.鈥�
Campbell River fire chief Thomas Doherty agrees: 鈥淚t鈥檚 great to create some more diversity,鈥� he said.
鈥淚t鈥檚 well known that there鈥檚 not a lot of females in the fire service, particularly in the suppression side of things. I think bringing that awareness up and getting the interest out to the younger groups to let them know that there are options out there and career paths,鈥� Doherty continued. 鈥淲e want to make sure that we give them all the right tools to guide them into what they鈥檙e interested in doing.鈥�
The camp started as a mentorship idea just over a decade ago, and expanded over time to be a four-day camp. Things have had to be cut back a bit this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but they are still able to provide a few days of education.
Besides the basic skills like SCBA (Self Contained Breathing Apparatus) knowledge, auto extrication and fire extinguishing techniques, the campers also get to meet women who are already a part of the industry and build connections for their future.
鈥淭he idea is that if they have any ambitions to go in that area they could get a sense of what might be required, and they get to see women doing that work and talk to them about the challenges they face in terms of integrating in to a non-traditional role,鈥� Rogers explained. 鈥淭hey get to see women who came in in the early days, women who came in recently and talk about the shift of the mentality and tolerance for women in the role and the way the job has changed over time.
鈥淐ertainly, firefighting isn鈥檛 what it was 40 years ago. What are those new expectations, what does the new landscape look like and what are the variety of opportunities?鈥�
This year鈥檚 camp will be on Aug. 14 and 15 in Vancouver. Applications will be accepted until June 1.
鈥淲hen young girls apply, we link them with their local fire department鈥� and they get sent to camp on that fire department鈥檚 dime as somewhat of a representative of their region. That鈥檚 how we make it accessible to young women who may not be able to participate,鈥� Rogers explained.
More information on Camp Ignite is available at their .
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