A female firefighter
My father is a firefighter. He fights fires, helps injured people and carries them to hospitals in an ambulance, trains for several situations, and maintains fire engines and ambulance cars so as they are ready to depart any time. He looks very tired when he comes home, so I think a firefighter’s work is both physically and spiritually hard.
When I asked him whether women worked as a firefighters, his answer was “No”. Although some women work at the fire station, they do not work at the scene.
But a few days ago, I found an article in a newspaper about a newly appointed female firefighter. She is the first woman in Mie prefecture who works as a firefighter, not at the office but at the scene. She is 18 years old now and enters a fire brigade this spring.
The article tells the story of her decision to become a firefighter. She belonged to a softball club in her high school days, and she was such a good player that she was very important on her team. One day, she hurt her leg in the game and was carried away by an ambulance car, so her team lost the game. While she was being carried away, a firefighter told her that she could play softball again after her leg was healed. He encouraged her, and she decided she also wanted to encourage and help suffering people. After that, she studied very hard to pass the test, and at last her effort bore fruit! She said, “It is very hard to work as an equal with men, but I am determined to give my best.”
I was surprised and moved when I read the article, because the young woman fixed her eyes on her future, put in an effort, and made her dream come true.
Years ago in the US you'd hear the same tone of surprise. Now female firefighters are generally accepted. I think in another generation, people will be surprised that anyone thought women couldn't be firefighters.
It's not about being a man or a woman. It's about physical and mental and emotional strength. I couldn't be a firefighter. But then neither could my husband. We're both the sedentary bookworm type.
Hi M., Welcome to Tawawa!
It's probably true that in most other industrialised countries women have made greater inroads into traditionally male domains.
In a New York Times Op-Ed article back in April (pity these columns disappear into the pay-per-view archive so quickly), Nicholas Kristof called for re-examining the ban on women in American front-line combat forces.
Masami :: June 7, 2003 01:39 AM
I'm surprised that we have a female fire fighter in Mie, and that a woman can work as a fire fighter. I don't discriminate against women, but I think that fire fighting might be hard job for a woman. However, she is trying to work as an equal with men, isn't she? She is brave and tough!