Countywide : CYA’s Female Fire Crew Marks 3 Years
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Wielding shovels, axes, rakes and chain saws, the California Youth Authority’s all-female crew of firefighters gathered Wednesday to celebrate three years of battling blazes.
The 15 members of the crew, incarcerated at CYA’s Ventura School in Camarillo, donned orange suits, boots, hard hats, goggles and packs to stand in formation with their tools.
CYA has male fire crews throughout the state, including one in Camarillo. There is only one all-female crew.
“They do the same job the men do,” said Gerald Carpenter, fire captain for the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. One of the first fires that the women worked was the massive Painted Cave fire in Santa Barbara in June, 1990. Since then, they’ve been dispatched to Ojai, Kern County, San Diego and Yosemite National Park.
Tisha Jeffries, 19, wants to be a professional firefighter when paroled. “It’s a good opportunity and I don’t want to waste it.”
“We’re proud of who we are and what we are,” said Cheniqua Young, 21. “We’re not afraid to work.”
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