|
By Sean Jarem
The Dispatch
Brandy Alexander vividly remembers riding in the fire truck with her dad as a young girl at the West Lexington Volunteer Fire Department.
At that moment she decided that fighting fires was something she wanted to do for the rest of her life.
The 5-foot 2-inch, blue-eyed blonde is one of only two female firefighters in the history of the Lexington Fire Department.
“I started volunteering at the West Lexington Fire Department when I was 15 years old,” she said. “I knew this was what I was meant to do.”
Now, only five years later, the 20-year-old Davidson County native is fulfilling her dream. But that dream took a lot of dedication, hard work and the belief in herself, especially during the preemployment agility test.
One of the obstacles was to drag a 180-pound dummy 150 feet.
“I was nervous, but everybody was cheering me on the whole way,” she said.
Lexington Deputy Fire Chief Phillip Hartley said they have had several women attempt the agility test, but none were able to successfully complete it.
The only other female firefighter, Danelle Rogers, was hired only six months before Alexander. The two are friends, but they work different shifts, so their interaction is limited.
Alexander is on a 15-person crew and said she considers herself part of a close-knit family. Being a woman, she said, didn’t exclude her from having to prove herself to the team.
“We are here 24 hours at a time, and we are a family,” Hartley said. “We pull practical jokes on everybody, and we don’t cut her any slack because she is a woman. We do respect the fact that she is a female, and obviously there is a line we do not cross.”
She is stationed at the fire department’s headquarters on East Center Street , which is equipped with individual bedrooms and showers.
Alexander has every intention of moving up the ladder in the fire business. She was hired in October 2005 and holds the position of firefighter 1.
She is certified under state guidelines but continues to take classes at Davidson County Community College toward an associate degree in fire protection.
“My goal is to be a captain one day,” she said.
Her supervisors said she is well on her way.
“She is a very hard worker, learns quick, and she has caught on very fast,” Hartley said. “We have been very impressed.”
Hartley recalls a time when the department was conducting a controlled burn for a training exercise, and he noticed one group in particular that was doing a superior job.
“I was wondering who was on that crew and when they came out, Brandy took off her mask, and there was her long blond hair,” Hartley said. “I was thinking that she can really pull her own weight.”
The Lexington Fire Department has a lunch-buddy program, where firefighters will visit local schools and spend time talking to students.
She said most comments about her being a female firefighter comes from young boys.
“They come up with all kinds of stuff,” Alexander joked.
Sean Jarem can be reached at 249-3981, ext. 228 or at sean.jarem@the-dispatch.com
|
