A Richmond teen got a taste of a career in saving lives and battling fires this weekend at a camp for B.C. girls interested in firefighting.
Camp Ignite selects a group of 16 to 18-year-old girls for a summer weekend learning about the rescue skills, fitness and teamwork needed for a career as an emergency responder.
This year, Richmond Fire-Rescue sponsored Kayla Blossom, 16, the first girl from Richmond to attend.
“It was amazing,” she told the Richmond News. “We spent four days at different fire halls working on skills … The biggest highlight was when we went to the [Justice Institute of British Columbia] and I actually got to go into the burn building. So we were in a live fire and I was the one that put it out.”
Girls from across B.C. travelled to the Lower Mainland where they suited up in a full firefighting kit, learned how to use hoses, fire hydrants and extinguishers and practiced rope rescues in confined spaces.
“[It’s] a unique opportunity to empower young women to learn more about the fire service and consider firefighting as a career in the future,” said Richmond Fire-Rescue Chief Tim Wilkinson in a press release.
Blossom said the girls were introduced to several accomplished women firefighters during the weekend, as well as some younger women who were just entering the field.
“It was revealed to me that only three per cent of the fire department is female. It’s definitely a male dominated area,” she said. “I didn’t know what it even looked like for women. But these women really inspired me and showed me can do anything.”
Blossom’s uncle, a volunteer firefighter, was the one who encouraged her to apply to the camp. To be sponsored by Richmond Fire-Rescue, she competed in a lengthy selection process, which included writing an impressive essay on a mentor and completing a series of interviews. She’s part of the eighth cohort of young women to attend the camp.
“I got a taste of the firefighting world, and now I want a bigger bite,” she said, adding she’d seriously consider it as a career.
