Women in the Fire Service

Olivia Belbute
Contributing Writer

“At the end of the day, to be able to help another human in some of their worst times is really fulfilling and a rewarding career path to follow,” New Sharon (ME) Fire Chief Felicia Bell stated.

Chief Bell has been a member of the fire service for eight years now. Bell became the New Sharon Chief in January of 2018 and was previously a firefighter on the Livermore Falls Fire Department. Bell said becoming the Fire Chief happened fast.

From Livermore Falls, Bell moved to New Sharon and joined their Volunteer Fire Department. After being on the department for about a year, she became a lieutenant and two years later became the assistant fire chief. When the prior fire chief resigned she applied for the chief’s position and was hired.

Bell wasn’t always interested in being a firefighter. Throughout her childhood, she grew up wanting to go into the law enforcement field. Bell was deployed to Afghanistan in the Army National Guard. She has continued to serve in the National Guard for about fifteen years. After coming back from her deployment, she decided to join her local fire department. Chief Bell is also on the Togus Veterans Affairs Hospital Fire Department in Augusta, which also provides mutual aid for the neighboring communities.

When asked about if she felt as though there was gender inequality in the fire service, she said that she thinks that it exists but that “we have come a long way as women in the fire field.” Along the same topic, Bell wishes that there would be more female representation in the officers level in the Maine Fire Services.

Based on 2020 data from the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), it was estimated that there were 1,041,200 career firefighters and volunteer firefighters in the United States, 89,600 of which were female (approx. 9%). Of that, the total number of career firefighters was about 354,300 firefighters (35%) and the total number of volunteer firefighters was about 676,900 (65%). Of the volunteer firefighters in the U.S.,72,400 (11%) were female.

“If you're interested, definitely seek out a local department and go see what they do. Get a feel of what's required but if you have an inkling of joining, do it!” Chief Bell stated.

https://www.nfpa.org/News-and-Research/Data-research-and-tools/Emergency-Responders/US-fire-department-profile