Posted on 07/02/2002 3:49:03 PM PDT by chance33_98
Women in the fire department
Some El Paso women are finding out what it takes to be a firefighter. They are getting ready for the next Firefighter Entrance test with the aid of the fire department.
Monday, July 01, 2002 -- "I'm pushing myself to the limits, I never really pushed myself to," said Linda Montes, who is in training.
Montes is getting ready for the firefighter's exam.
Two days a week for three hours, she studies and works out hoping to be in the next class, but she is not alone.
The girls are getting a headstart thanks to the El Paso Fire Department Training Academy.
"We're trying to get more women on the department. More hispanics, all types of women," said Carlos Lopez, a medical trainer with the academy.
Presently, there are only four female firefighters on the El Paso department.
To prove themselves, the girls have to undergo a rigorous workout.
They pound a piece of steel with a sledge hammer, run up five flights of stairs, pull a firehose 150 feet, and flip a large tire across a parking lot. This is all done with lots of encouragement from the other ladies.
The latest challenge is getting through an obstacle course with a thirty-pound tank of oxygen and a mask on. Crystal Schmidt was the first to put it on.
"At first, the mask doesn't give out any air. But after you take the first breath, then it pretty much gives you all the air you need," said Schmidt.
Although it is complex, these girls say this course if giving them all the training required to pass the test.
Does the fire dept. provide this training/aid to all people or only to women/minorities?
Why do they need all this extra training anyway? Haven't the physical qualifications been lowered for women compared to men?
Oh, that means the victim will be burned to death.
More hispanics? I can just see the hispanic female carring a 275 pound victim down 6 flights of stairs. Total PC insanity, and racist to boot.
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