A typical quality of a firefighter? Erik de Jonge, team leader of the volunteer fire brigade in Voorschoten, talks about the time when five firefighters and one woman were on their way to an incident. An unpleasant situation seemed to arise for a moment when the commander was unable to divide the tasks and one of the men took charge. It was the firefighter who put things in order by pointing out the team’s interests and respecting the commander. De Jonge: “If this lady had not banged her fist on the table, there might have been a mutiny. Firefighters are often a kind of glue in the team.”
That is also the reason why the Voorschoten fire station consciously looks for women. After a ladies’ night where women were introduced to the fire brigade profession two years ago, the team now consists of twenty men and five women. That is more than the 6 percent of women in an average volunteer force in the Netherlands, according to research recent research of the Netherlands Institute of Public Safety (NIPV) on recruiting and retaining women in the volunteer fire brigade. Eighty percent of the 22,000 firefighters in the Netherlands are volunteers, and more than a thousand people work as professionals and volunteers. The requirements and work for professionals and volunteers, men and women, are the same.
“Group interviews with firefighters show that the majority prefer a male/female ratio of 80/20 percent,” says Karin Dangermond, senior researcher at the NIPV. While women in a force have important added value, the same study showed. “With women in a team, social cohesion changes. The atmosphere becomes softer and safer, men feel more room to be vulnerable,” she says. “Although there are of course also women who participate just as hard in making bad jokes.”
“After an incident, it is more often women who are seen as confidants and who pay attention to the needs of a colleague, such as an arm around the shoulder,” says Dangermond. “During the incident itself, firefighters often have a different view of a situation and see different, often more creative solutions.” Saskia van den Broek, regional commander of the Zaanstreek-Waterland safety region, agrees. She cites as an example the situation in which a man’s feet were trapped between the bars of his bed, and the fire brigade arrived with heavy equipment to saw through the bars. The woman in the team then said: we can also lift the mattress.
Yet the majority of fire stations do not specifically look for women. The reason, the research shows: it is not seen as a problem that there are no or few women in the force, people do not want to make any distinction. After all, it’s about the qualities.
Of the 25 safety regions (which include the fire stations), 14 have no diversity policy. Dangermond: “Safety regions say that diversity is important, but we do not see that reflected in their policy. And in half of the safety regions there are fire stations without facilities for women, such as a separate shower.”
Less physically demanding
“The fire brigade still has a number of veterans who are not used to women in the force. It is precisely these men who are more likely to resist the conscious choice of a firefighter,” says Saskia van den Broek. In addition to being the regional commander of the Zaanstreek-Waterland safety region, she is the diversity portfolio holder on behalf of the 25 safety regions. In her own region, 22 of the 23 posts have one or more women in the volunteer corps. “I of course asked the reason for that one post without women. What turned out? The only woman who had served on the force had entered into a relationship with a firefighter. I hear that often, I don’t understand why that would be a problem. Nowadays, forces have difficulty recruiting enough people. If you don’t actively recruit women, you are already excluding half of potential candidates.”
The NIPV research shows that many women do not know what the fire brigade profession exactly entails. “They often think that the work is too hard or too technical, or cannot be combined with the home situation,” says Dangermond. Van den Broek: “While the profession has become physically less demanding in recent years because equipment has become lighter, such as the fire hose. Moreover, only 30 percent of emergency response incidents involve fire. The rest involves emergency services: entrapment, car accidents, ambulance assistance, hoisting (lifting someone out of a home), resuscitation.” And it is precisely in those situations that a feminine face is important, Van den Broek believes. “If you go into a burning house, no one will see who is in that suit. And that’s not what it’s about. But with accidents it’s a different story. Then you just want someone with you who feels familiar.”
Yellow card
Yet many firefighters do not want to be seen as special, he emphasizes. “’I am a volunteer first, and a woman second,’ is what they say.” The fact that they are challenged about their femininity in the corps itself is part of it and you have to be able to cope with it, say the women who NRC spoke. De Jonge: “Before our ladies’ night I also told the men that it was not useful to make a misogynistic joke. By the way, we talk to each other about this anyway. For an incorrect comment, someone gets a figurative yellow card.”
According to De Jonge, making matters open for discussion is the best way to allow a mixed team to flourish. “There is no monkey rock here. We talk after every exit, no matter how small or big it was. This creates a safe atmosphere. People dare to be vulnerable. It took time to establish this culture of talking, but there was no struggle. This is also because we have a fairly new team with young people. I am convinced that women ensure that firefighters bring out the best in each other.”
‘I dreamed of this as a child’
Ilse Kloot (42) has been active in the volunteer fire brigade in Zwijndrecht for fourteen years. In daily life she works there in the fire prevention department. She is one of four women in her corps. She sheds between 100 and 150 times a year.
Ilse Kloot (42) has been active in the volunteer fire brigade in Zwijndrecht for fourteen years. In daily life she works there in the fire prevention department. She is one of four women in her corps. She sheds between 100 and 150 times a year.
‘As a little girl I thought those red cars with the blue lights were powerful. I already had the dream of joining the fire brigade later. I did that too. First the youth fire brigade and, when I was 28, the volunteer fire brigade. I still find it fantastic to walk through the depot with all those fire trucks. I do everything I can to get out as often as possible. When the pager goes off, I drop everything and jump in the car.
Sitting in the back of the car and not knowing yet what you will find, the adrenaline and getting the job done with six people is a golden combination. What gives me particular satisfaction is being able to mean something to others, no matter how minimal. An older lady who had fallen in the bathroom in her nightgown held my hand while paramedics worked on her. I had a lump in my throat when the ambulance drove away with her. Or the victim I pulled from a burning house. It wasn’t until I handed him over to the ambulance that I realized what had happened. Then I had to unzip my suit and take off my helmet to literally get air. And what did I hear from bystanders? “Hey, it’s a woman.” Somehow that gave me a kick.
I think women have a different view during an incident. Especially when it comes to contact with victims. Men are sometimes jerks and can be blunt. If there are children involved, I will always sit at eye level with them. And I’ll take the fireman’s bear with me to comfort him. My male colleagues don’t think about that. Since I became a mother a year and a half ago, incidents involving children have affected me more deeply. But I still enter a burning house as openly as before. If I couldn’t do that, I better quit. Once home, it is nice to see the little one again. To him I am tutatuta-mama.”
‘Humor helps to deal with serious incidents’
‘When I came across a fire during a road trip with my father through the United States, I thought it was very cool. I always wanted to do something for society, that fire inspired me. When I got home there was a recruitment poster for the volunteer fire brigade in our village. And so I signed up. If I had specifically asked for a firefighter, I would not have applied. I want to be hired for my abilities, not for my womanhood. A team should have a good mix of feminine and masculine qualities instead of women and men.
In Ilpendam, where I first volunteered, I was the first woman. The men especially enjoyed it. In Monnickendam, where I now live, my partner is also a member of the volunteer fire brigade. So at home it is often about the fire brigade. Before the birth of our daughter, we sometimes sat together in the car during a turnout. It’s nice that he knows what I’m going through. If I have experienced something intense, I can always discuss it at home. Like the time I had to get a dead woman out of a submerged car. But it doesn’t always have to be big and spectacular, smaller incidents can also be intense. Humor helps to cope.
I was away from it for more than a year and a half around the time our daughter was born. I was surprised at how little arrangements were made for returning to the force. For example, did I have to do extra training? Or could I just get back into the car? The organization wants to be diverse, but also arrange something for pregnant women.
Since Noor was born, it has become a little more difficult to get out. When the pager rings, someone must be there immediately to take care of her. We also now both have the feeling that we have to get home safely after a turnout. Although I think I could just turn the switch if I had to enter a burning house.”
‘If necessary, head to a fire with your hair on end’
Bregje Rooijakkers (47) has been active in the volunteer fire brigade in Beek en Donk for fifteen years. She is one of two women in her corps. The corps has about 30 deployments per year. In daily life she works as a pediatric nurse.
‘I’m always looking for challenges. Not only in my work, but also in my private life. That’s why I joined the volunteer fire brigade fifteen years ago. Although I had some doubts because I had two young children at the time. But I went for it anyway. I think the combination of challenge and helping people is the great thing about this job. Of course I can take my experiences from the hospital to the fire brigade. During a turnout, my colleagues are more likely to move me forward if, for example, someone needs to be resuscitated. They are two different worlds, pediatric nursing and fire brigade, but ultimately the goal is the same.
If you are involved in an unpleasant incident, you must stand strong as a team and be able to trust each other completely. Fortunately, we can support each other when necessary. Like the time I was involved in an accident where a young woman was trapped in the car. I talked to her, but she eventually died on the street from her injuries. That had an impact on me. Fortunately, I have never had to remove a deceased person from a burning house. Even then I will go in full of adrenaline and do what I have learned.
In my corps I have always felt accepted by the male colleagues. Even when I was commander and now that I have been head of post for a year. If you prove that you can do the same work as a man, then there is little to worry about. If you can’t handle the humor of firefighters, you shouldn’t do this job. I also don’t think they should adapt, or vice versa. It’s about being there as a team when necessary. With my hair standing on end, if necessary. Because when the pager rings, I don’t have to think about my haircut or putting on my lips.”