For the first time in the history of the Pasadena Fire Department, the entire engine crew rolling out of Station 34 is female. Girl Power!
ABC7 reports that these firefighters have gone viral on social media! The all-female crew is under the command of Capt. Tricia Rodriguez.
The social media post below states: "FIRST all-female crew in history of Pasadena Fire Department riding together on Engine 34."
ABC7 adds some trivia -- Fire stations are required to be staffed with a captain, an engineer and two firefighters. It just so happened that Tuesday’s staffing had four women at the right rank! Amazing!
Pasadena Fire Engineer Christina Terrazas told CBSLA Tuesday: “We actually have females that have been promoted within the department enough to fill the seats so that we could put a complement of all female firefighters on an engine company."
The Pasadena Fire Department is staffed with 150 firefighters, eight of whom are women. That puts the department at 5% women, above the national average of 4% for career women firefighters, CBSLA adds.
Tuesday’s situation is not permanent. It came about because the four were all on overtime for a single 24-hour shift.
“The guys get to experience that every day, and as much as we enjoy working with them and they love working with us, it’s really nice to enjoy this experience today,” Terrazas said.
For those who didn't know, CBSLA adds that the Los Angeles Fire Department runs a fire camp specifically for young girls that it uses to try and recruit them into the department later on. The Pasadena Fire Department reportedly planned to begin a similar program this year as well.
See CBSLA's reporting below:
PHOTOS: City of Pasadena - Public Agency