1st AND BRAVEST
FDNY pioneer now highest-ranking woman in rescue squad
TRAILBLAZING FDNY Lt. Walsh is making history — again.
Walsh, 51, on Monday became the first woman to serve in a position of rank in one of the Fire Department’s five elite rescue companies.
Serving as a lieutenant in Rescue Co. 1, which covers Manhattan, Walsh is joining one of five highly technical emergency response units that race to large fires or other high-risk situations where specialized training, skills and equipment are required. Each borough has its own unit.
It’s the second “first” in Walsh’s FDNY career.
The 21-year veteran also was the first woman to hold a position of rank in the Special Operations Command — and only its second woman member.
“I feel really honored to be doing what I do every day,” she told the Daily News ahead of her first tour Monday night at Rescue 1 on W. 43rd St.
“There are plenty of capable women who came before me. I was the one who was Adrienne lucky enough to get the opportunity. And that’s tremendously humbling.”
Walsh joined the FDNY in April 1997, as a firefighter with Ladder 20. “It sounded like a really interesting occupation,” she said.
She transferred to Squad 18 in May 2003 and, in December 2005, was promoted to lieutenant.
“I’m looking forward to it because it’s a larger geographical area, working with more companies, and that’s going to be great,” she said of her new role. “I look forward to my new experience. I’ve had a tremendous amount of support.”
Walsh, who has been doing technical rescues since 2002, will be the person in charge at Rescue 1 when she’s on duty, and as a supervisor on scene, she’ll oversee the operation. “It is a lot of responsibility,” the Brooklyn native said.
The rescue companies’ assignments go beyond fighting fires. They may respond to an incident of a trapped firefighter, a stranded window washer or a collapsed construction site, or enlist their skilled divers for marine missions — which they did on March 11, when a helicopter took a deadly plunge into the East River, killing all five passengers.
“It runs the gamut,” Walsh told The News.
Walsh also participated in the rescue and recovery operations on 9/11, and responded to the West Side Highway terror attack last Halloween.
“I have been working in Manhattan most of my career,” she said, adding that she has observed how the city and its structures have changed over time. “It always helps to have that base of knowledge and historical perspective.”
She also trained as a diver in the Coast Guard Reserve and ran a scuba unit for the FDNY from 2006-2007.
“I am constantly amazed by the people I work with — the things they’re asked to do, going above and beyond, not thinking anything but ‘let’s get the job done,’ ” she said.
Of the 8,345 firefighters in the FDNY, 72 are women. Sixty-five of those women are firefighters, six are lieutenants and one is a captain, according to a department official.
“Women in this department, as a group, we’re growing, and history will continue to expand,” Walsh said. “It’s being recognized, and I think that’s great.”