PHOTOS: In an industry that has been predominantly male, and remains that way in many communities, women are starting to take a more active role as firefighters and leaders at their agencies, especially in smaller and more rural fire districts. Nationally, just 4% of career firefighters are women, while women make up about 10% of volunteers.
Vernonia is bucking that long-standing, industry trend, where two of the five fire department officers, and nine of the agencyโs 20 volunteers, along with four of the six Emergency Medical Services (EMS) personnel who work out of the station, are women.
โThroughout my entire career Iโve always very much enjoyed working alongside women,โ says Vernonia Fire Chief Greg Brody. โI think they definitely complement the fire service and bring a unique perspective to what is commonly thought of as a male dominated field.โ
