KSLA-TV News 12, Shreveport, LA
Interact: Women in Emergency Services Forum
Used to be, a lot of kids wanted to grow up to be a
fireman.
Many still do, but these days the term is firefighter.
In the 21st century women have added diversity to the
traditionally male dominated profession.
That's especially true, in Shreveport.
Capt. Rita Bush says, "being able to do my job, having
the strength to do my job. Having the knowledge of
course the fire department taught me all of it. And
having the tenacity to do it because it took a lot
back then."
Back then was 20-years ago when Captain Bush joined
the Shreveport Fire Department, she was the second
female hired.
But newer firefighter paramedics like Tracy Omes,
don't have as many issues to tackle.
Omes says, "if you're here to work hard and do
everything they expect a man to do, at least to the
best of your ability, physically, emotionally,
spiritually, you can have a good impact on the men as
a women."
Tracy Omes also says women can bring more compassion,
but she believes men and women complement each other,
"you got guys in there that are extremely strong, and
then you have people that are better as far as
endurance. So when we get in there and put it all
together it works great."
Capt. Bush adds, "the guys may pull the hose off the
truck one way, I may do it a different way. We
accomplish the same thing, but I may use my legs where
they use their arms and upper body strength. You learn
how to do things to accomplish the same goal."
And back at the station there are other challenges to
get used to since things are stacked in mens favor,
the accommodations are for men, but over time women
have learned to adjust.
Tracy Omes says, "a lot of the stations have only one
bathroom so they have to put locks on the doors. So
you have to remember to lock doors and remember to
always have on appropriate clothing at night when
we're sleeping, I sleep in my clothes."
Changes are all part of the job and it's the daily
change that makes the job interesting.
Omes says, "I wanted some excitement, I wanted to be
out there in my community. I think it's one of those
jobs where you never know what's going to happen."
And Capt. Bush adds, "when you help people on a daily
basis, you leave the job with a full heart and you
feel like you've done something with your life."
The Shreveport Fire Department ranks among the top in
the nation, when it comes to gender equality.
There are about 30-females on the 500 firefighter
force.
