00:00In the Drill Tower, we are tested to be under 60 seconds.
00:11Probably like 65, 70 pounds.
00:14And then we're off to work.
00:16I'm Chris Lornault and I make $91,000 a year as a female firefighter for a living.
00:22I became a female firefighter out of curiosity.
00:25I was presented the idea in 2019 when I was approached by a Los Angeles Fire Department member.
00:30They saw me in the gym, they saw me working every day and they presented the idea.
00:34They spoke genuinely about how much they love their job.
00:38So curiosity got the best of me and I decided to apply in 2020 when they opened the process.
00:44The Los Angeles Fire Department has over 3,000 members and females make about 3% of the force.
00:49To be one of the over 100 females in the Los Angeles Fire Department, it is a privilege.
00:53It is very humbling.
00:54When it comes to being able to wear this badge, it's not about just being a female
00:58and seeing what I'm capable of doing, but there's a little bit of a weight to it
01:02because I want to wear this and represent this department well.
01:05So it's a big responsibility and I know that being a female and for the public to see us on
01:11calls,
01:12we might be stared out a little bit longer because they're curious as well and I see it in their
01:16faces,
01:17but it always makes me feel good when I'm able to go out there and make that impact
01:21and make that connection with them and they're able to see us out there and doing the job.
01:25The training to become a firefighter was everything from physical preparation to mental preparation.
01:31So I even hired a trainer that works with special forces, military.
01:36The amount of stress and endurance that he put me through mentally is really what prepared me for this department
01:42because we're pushing through physically a lot of the things that we're doing
01:45because we don't get to stop and take breaks.
01:47So I made sure that his training along with my physical training in the gym prepared me mentally and physically.
01:55And then emotionally, I spoke to other firefighters.
01:58They were really a good resource for me to reach out and say, what do I need to do?
02:02How do I need to be prepared?
02:03So they were able to speak to me in giving me tools and tips to be prepared for the drill
02:08tower
02:08outside of the physical training that I was doing.
02:10As a Los Angeles firefighter, when you get hired, you start at $78,000.
02:14And as you move through time and training, you can actually make $138,000 in that rank.
02:21The opportunity to work overtime and stay holidays.
02:25There's a lot of benefits because it adds to your paychecks.
02:29So as much as I say, this is what I make as my salary, we can take home a lot
02:34more through keeping resources open,
02:37the engines running, the ambulances open, you have the potential to make a lot more money.
02:42So we have three platoons, A, B, and C shift.
02:45We do work 24-hour shifts.
02:47It will be a five-day period, three of those days with 24 hours off in between.
02:52And then after those three days of the five-day period, we then get four days off.
02:56A typical day at the fire station starts at 6.30 in the morning.
02:59So we're walking in, we're getting our stuff ready.
03:03That includes going to whether it's the engine, the truck, the ambulances.
03:07Everything is accounted for because any second we can get a call and we have to be out the door
03:11and we need to be prepared.
03:12And then throughout the day, we work on projects, whether it's cleaning the tools, changing out hose.
03:18There's always something to work on to improve the station, something for training that we can improve ourselves.
03:23And then the little amount of time that we get to ourselves outside of calls, we try to be able
03:28to just create those bonds.
03:30It could be something like watching a little bit of a movie or one of our favorites is just to
03:33have a fire pit where we can all sit around and share stories and just relax.
03:36So a full 24 hours is quite eventful, but we always try to find time for ourselves so that we
03:42can have those moments as a crew.
03:44Living in a fire station in a male dominant industry, I've so far had nothing but a positive experience.
03:50They have been more than welcoming. I can absolutely say I feel like I have grown with 3,000 new
03:56big brothers.
03:57That was definitely something that I questioned, like, am I going to fit in? Are they going to accept me?
04:01But my crews have been nothing but more than welcoming me with open arms.
04:06So I've worked with Crystal here for about maybe a year and a half. She got sent to us. This
04:11was her third house.
04:12She's my second set of eyes. So if there's something that I don't see or vice versa, I always tell
04:17her,
04:17Hey, speak up and let me know because if we're on the 800 together, that's when we need to be
04:22there for each other and watch for each other's back.
04:24So nothing that she isn't eager to learn and she's just so respectful. She has the desire to want to
04:31learn and the compassion to help others in hard situations.
04:37On the job, I do not wear makeup, but I do like to get my eyelashes done. That's kind of
04:41my way of like still feeling that feminine energy because I am a female.
04:46And I embrace being able to be a female and bring that uniqueness to a department while still being able
04:52to be that strong individual that I have become.
04:55So the eyelashes are like my one little thing. I also, you can't wear makeup and put a face piece
04:59on and be sweating in a burning building because it just all gets in your eyes.
05:02So this is my one little way of having that little feminine touch.
05:06So times of the essence with us, we are trained to be fast.
05:11The most important part of our job is the response to calls. It could be a structure fire. It could
05:17be a medical call.
05:18The response of us getting to our gear, getting to our supplies and getting out the door.
05:23We always have to be prepared. I could be in the shower. I could be cooking lunch. It doesn't matter.
05:28The priority is to getting to those calls to the public because they're calling us out of distress.
05:33That's why we train so hard and we prepare as much as we do so that when we come to
05:37these emergencies, we're ready for it.
05:40And then we're off to work.
05:42Every call we go to is always different from the last one. I can go to 100 traffic accidents or,
05:48you know, my 10th or 15th or 20th structure fire.
05:51I'm proud of all of them because each one is challenging. Each one is unique. They're never the same.
05:55But I would say the ones that I'm most proud of is when I actually have that one on one
05:59interaction with people.
06:01One of the calls that I really didn't understand the impact on until the next day when a mother and
06:07a really young daughter, maybe eight years old, came by the station.
06:10They were in a traffic accident my previous shift and the mother said the little girl was so scared, but
06:16when she saw me, she felt comfort.
06:18So they brought cupcakes and she wanted to just say thank you.
06:22So for me to see her and see her smile and she said she wanted to be a female firefighter,
06:27that was it for me.
06:28That's where I knew I was able to make an impact, even if it's just that small, that meant the
06:33world to me.
06:35On the days that I do have off, I set my alarm clock for five o'clock and I usually
06:39wake up on my own at four o'clock.
06:40So I start at 4.30, usually I run my dogs, we get some cardio in and I go right
06:45to the gym.
06:46That's like my me time. All that energy we absorb, especially now in our career, the gym allows me to
06:51kind of take it out one rep at a time.
06:53I'm recycling it in a very positive way.
06:55When it comes to nutrition, which is probably one of my biggest passions, like my endurance, the way I feel,
07:01my energy levels,
07:02the way that I'm able to handle things is because of how I take care of my body.
07:06So I grew that passion for nutrition. That's something I share.
07:09And then I've also just learned about food, like the amount of information out there that we can self-educate
07:15has allowed me to kind of become the athlete that I am.
07:19And I don't believe that there's one way to do it.
07:22But for me, at least, if I'm going to be the best version of myself in on or off the
07:28job, then it starts with taking care of myself.
07:33For those that only think that being a firefighter is for men, I can tell you that there are over
07:37100 women
07:38on the Los Angeles Fire Department that are proving you wrong.
07:41It doesn't matter if you're male or female.
07:44Someone that is calling in an emergency wants someone that is competent and capable of helping them.
07:50If you are interested in becoming a firefighter, especially you females, I highly recommend knowing that what you do today
07:57matters.
07:57What you did yesterday matters.
07:58So if this is your career or any career that you want, be driven, be motivated.
08:03Say no to things that don't add to your future, to your goals.
08:07You know, small sacrifices now, but it's going to pay off.
08:10And to be able to say, this is my job.
08:13Like when you ask a firefighter what's the best part, they'll say this is the best job in the world.
08:16And I can absolutely tell you that it's true every single time.
08:18I am sitting in this chair along with over 100 other women in the Los Angeles Fire Department showing you
08:24that if you're willing to work, to be consistent, to be committed, it is possible.
08:30You can be a female firefighter for a living.
08:47To watch more videos like this, subscribe here.
08:50Like we're always here.
08:50Bye.
08:51Bye.
08:52Bye.
08:52Bye.
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