A team of National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) firefighters are blazing ahead, inspiring young women to take up jobs in firefighting and emergency services at the ‘Girls on Fire’ program Tuesday, 3 November and Wednesday, 4 November at Yarramundi.
Leigh Nolan, NPWS Fire Team Leader said the Service is partnering with Fire and Rescue NSW, the NSW Rural Fire Service and AirServices Australia to encourage young women to pursue a career in firefighting.
“As a mum it is really important that our girls hear from and see female firefighters in action and get exposed to these opportunities,” said Ms Nolan.
“I have worked for NPWS for nearly 23 years and have never regretted my choice, it is a dynamic experience and firefighting is a key part of the job that I love.
“At tomorrow’s workshop NPWS will introduce the girls to remote firefighting operations.
“We will talk about how NPWS crews work to contain lightning strikes that occur in hard to access, remote locations in national parks.
“We’ll go through the planning and practical steps we take to access these fires, reduce their spread and minimise their impact on nearby communities.
“By talking to these girls about my own firefighting experiences I want to show them that it is a really rewarding job and hopefully inspire them to pursue a career firefighting in NPWS, a choice they might not have thought of,” Ms Nolan said.
There are more than 1000 trained NPWS firefighting across New South Wales, around 25% are female. Many are highly trained members of the specialised Remote Area Firefighter Team (RAFT).
Virtually Possible is the latest Girls on Fire Program being rolled out across regional NSW from November 2020.
