KEEPING HER COOL
An Ottawa firefighter takes advantage of a cooling spray while helping to instruct young women at Camp FFIT on Wednesday. Camp FFIT — Female Firefighters in Training — is a weeklong program that gives young women the opportunity to experience what it take
A heat warning for Ottawa on Wednesday didn’t stop a group of tough-as-nails teenagers from tackling fires while suited up in thick, heavy gear.
Camp FFIT (Female Firefighters in Training) is a one-week course by the Ottawa Fire Service that gives teenaged girls hands-on experience with firefighting tools and techniques.
Twenty-four girls, ages 15-19, were split into four platoons of six. Each platoon, assisted by actual firefighters, rotated through a series of challenges that included a mock car fire, the use and control of firehoses, and basic knot tying.
Overseeing the teenagers as they clutched hoses and donned gear in the large paved lot behind the OFS training building on Industrial Avenue was Sue Jones, fire prevention officer and camp director.
“The goal is to have more women applying to be firefighters, so there’s more women to choose from,” Jones said.
The rate of female applicants has hovered around two to three per cent, and women comprise less than three per cent of the fire service, Jones said.
“It’s not necessarily that women aren’t being hired. It’s just that we don’t have great numbers of women applying, and really because they don’t know that this is a career option, she said.
“If they get an idea now of what they need to do to prepare, it makes them a better candidate for when they do apply.”
At around 11:30 a.m., the girls took a break for water and a photo opportunity with River Ward Coun. Riley Brockington and Stittsville Ward Coun. Shad Qadri.
“I really enjoyed using the hose over there, which is fun,” said trainee Emily Waller, 19, who travelled from Acton, a town west of Toronto, to participate in the unique camp.
“My dad’s a firefighter, so I’ve grown up around the fire station and doing volunteer stuff, and I think that just inspired me to become a firefighter.”
Waller said she will attend Lambton College in Sarnia for firefighting in September, adding that the only challenge she’s encountered so far is a lack of upper body strength. “I’m going to have to hit the gym hard.”
Tess Armstrong of Montreal said her father heard about the course through Facebook and encouraged her to give it a shot.
“Today we’ve been learning a lot about knots and their different uses in firefighting. We also got to see the airport firefighters and their big truck,” said Armstrong, motioning over to the two big limegreen vehicles.
Among the challenges that firefighters experience on the job, she said she’s learned just how hot it can get with the gear on.
“We’re in full gear and it’s super hot out and you don’t realize how heavy it is and how hot it is inside the suit,” Armstrong said.
“I’ve definitely never sweat this much.”
The camp, now in its seventh year, ends on Friday, with no break from the sweltering heat as forecast temperatures in the 30s feel more like 40 with the humidex.