SAN DIEGO — For the first time, the Women in Fire International Conference is being held in San Diego. Hundreds of women firefighters trained at the San Diego Fire Department Training Facility Wednesday.
"I know what it feels like to come out here and have that moment of 'oh my gosh, look at all of these women, they're just like me, they train like me, they think like me,' to have that moment where I can look across and see myself represented," Women in Fire Vice President Rachel Staebell said.
Hands-on training including forcible entry, repelling, auto extrication and more takes place at the Women in Fire 2024 International Conference. Only 9% of firefighters in the country were women as of 2020, according to the National Fire Protection Association.
"When we have an opportunity to get this many women together it's just a very unique environment, and it really allows women to focus on their careers, on their jobs and the things that unite them instead of the things that make them different," Staebell said.
This year, the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department was chosen to host the conference.
"I knew right away I will support this wholeheartedly, because knowing just what we have to offer here at our facility and what our personnel have to offer," Training Chief Willy Melendez said.
Firefighters from departments across the nation, and even some internationally, attended the four-day training which only happens every two years.
Catie Casciari is an SDFD firefighter and Women in Fire functional trustee. She attended her first conference in 2016.
"When you are in a class where you are not the minority anymore, is a pretty amazing experience," she said. "I've been in classes where I was the only female and when you come here and you are all females...like it's just a very comfortable, very safe and empowering environment."
While Women in Fire works to empower female firefighters, they support and help all firefighters.
"We have many, many male members, male allies because we very much believe that when our female firefighters are better, the fire service as a whole is better," Staebell said.
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