Izmir fights fire with fiery women

Hurriyet Daily News with wires

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The six women who joined the team have surprised their male counterparts with their courage and hard work.

AKS 110, which operates 24 hours everyday, fully utilizes the equipment available to the department and is a good example of the department’s hard work. AKS 110 was launched to save people’s lives during disasters, such as earthquakes, fires, floods, accidents, chemical leaks and avalanches. The latest written and oral exam was held September and 132 graduates passed to become firefighters, among them was 32 women. Six of the women were selected to become part of the AKS 110 team and are now trained assist in emergencies.

Being a firefighter takes strength and tolerance and these six women have it all. This is the first time the team of 56 people has included women. İzmir Metropolitan Municipality Fire Department, however, operates with a 943 people team, including 33 women.

Those chosen to participate in the AKS 110 crew are trained to drive vehicles and use equipment during rescue operations, fight chemical and industrial fires, and rescue people from fires, the wreckage of earthquakes, traffic accidents, floods and from mountain climbs. They have also learned first aid.

Figen Biricik, 28, is one of İzmir’s first female firefighters. "Being a firefighter is something to be proud of. Us being women may be unusual for some people but we will prove that women can be as successful as they are in every other area of work. Saving people is a sacred mission and we are proud of our job," Biricik said.

Berivan Sefer, who is the same age as Biricik, said: "I chose this job willingly. I advise women to become firefighters because I believe we will create a new environment for female fire fighters."


In 2007, the Antalya Metropolitan Municipality Fire Department also hired five women as fire fighters. These women graduated from Akdeniz, Istanbul and Kocaeli University’s technical science vocational schools for fire and security after two years of training.

In accordance with Civil Servant Law 657, amended in 2006, municipalities have employed female firefighters for the first time in their histories.

Although Istanbul’s population is bigger than any other city in Turkey and the unemployment rate is high, there are no firewomen there.

The assistant director of Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality Fire Department, Osman Özcanlı, said: "We only have nine female employees, who work indoors. There were no women at all until last year. According to Özcanlı, hiring women as firefighters depends on the opportunities of the department. "There are not too many fire departments in the Aegean region and the Mediterranean so they are able to place women in one fire station to supply them with a place to sleep and change clothes," Özcanlı said.

Female volunteers

"There are voluntary women firewomen in Istanbul," Özcanlı said, adding most of the voluntary female fire fighters live on the Prince’s Islands. The female volunteers, however, are not allowed use fire fighting equipment and were only allowed to work when they were called on by the department, Özcanlı said.