Three women firefighters talk about the battles they have fought

When the Vice Admiral, Giannoula Yanni, he entered the Fire Academy, in November 1998, was the second set of women who had just been inducted into a male-dominated body. Almost 20 years later, in 2017, the pyramid, Alexandra - Argyro Tzoumerka became the first female drone system operator in the Fire Department, becoming the head of the 1st Unmanned Aircraft Systems Group (UASG) of the Fire Department. In the same year, Lt, Agathi - Evangelia Fuka, she left her hometown of Agrinio to come to Athens to start studying at the Fire Academy.

These three women made the decision to serve in the Fire Department, to throw themselves into the battle of dealing with natural disasters and everyday challenges, in a profession - a profession which is mainly practiced by men as according to the latest data, women in the corps make up 5%. The aim, however, as Fire Brigade officials point out, is to increase this percentage and to staff the Corps with even more women.

Giannoula Giannis - Deputy Fire Marshal - Adjutant to the Operations Coordinator of Central Greece and Thessaly : «I want more and more women to join the Corps»

Deputy Fire Chief Giannoula Giannis was not even 19 when she started her first steps in the Fire Brigade. Some 24 years ago she was not well aware of whether there were any women on the force. Looking around she found that women were just starting to enter the school and decided to do her paperwork. To this day, she remembers the first incident she encountered that involved a fatality while she was still a cadet. But the event that scarred her was last summer's fires in North Evia. «I went to Evia on August 3 and left on the 13th. I was there an hour and a half from the start of the incident. It was probably the most difficult moment so far and I hope it won't happen again. The conditions were difficult, there was a prolonged drought, the temperatures were very high for many days, the relative humidity was too low so the fuel was like tinder. We had too many incidents across the country that day, too many starts, so there was a dispersal of forces and we were trying to do the best we could with the forces we had available.

It was very dangerous, both for us and for the people we were trying to rescue», Ms.Yanni describes, while explaining that the hours of rest during those days were minimal as they wanted to help «as much as possible to save people». At the time of duty, all Ms. Yanni thinks about is the rescue, to help, as she says, those in need at that time. «The first thing we care about is protecting life, not only human life but also the animals that need our help. But then it's dramatic for us to see the natural environment being destroyed, in addition to the property and human life which is the worst part. For every house that burns down we may cry more than the rest of the people,» he says.

Since she started serving in the Fire Brigade, Ms. Yanni notes that a lot of progress has been made and more and more women are choosing to join the Brigade. «I want more and more women to join the force. Although several have already joined it is still male-dominated. However, a lot of progress has been made, colleagues do not treat us differently, maybe the older ones found it strange but slowly everyone has adapted. The difficulties are multifaceted but I think all professions have difficulties, it is not something we face only in the fire service. I was the second set of women to join the Fire Brigade and of course colleagues were beginning to accept us happily, we didn't have any particular problems. I have not faced any particular difficulty.

When I joined the PC I didn't know exactly what I would face. It's a profession - a vocation - that has no hours and you need to spend many hours of your life there. The operational part is something that is physically tiring but often also psychologically tiring, as we have to deal with images that are not easily manageable,» she said. Sending her own message for the International Women's Day she stresses: I do not consider that women celebrate only one day, I consider that we celebrate every day. We must be strong, we must not be afraid to express our real problems, what we really feel, nor should we be afraid to demand what we deserve.

Alexandra - Argyro Tzoumerka - PS Officer - Pyragos : «The strength that completes you and the inspiration that drives you has no gender»

The officer of the fire brigade, firefighter, Alexandra Tzoumerka was one of the most important athletes in athletics in Panachaiki. For the past 15 years, she has served in the Fire Department having passed through key positions and for the past five years she served in the 1st Special Disaster Response Unit, 1st EMAC, as an operations officer and as the head of the 1st Unmanned Aircraft Systems Group (UASG) of the Fire Department. Ms. Jumerka was the first female drone operator in the Fire Department.

Through drones, those who operate them can monitor forest areas and have an aerial view to coordinate ground firefighting forces, locate missing persons in search and rescue and monitor large-scale industrial accidents or hazardous material spills.

As she explains to RES-MPA, her love for nature and people, her participation in social actions to support people who were facing difficulties and the protection of animals were one way for her to join the Fire Brigade. «It is a profession that brings me in contact with people of all ages and social profiles, putting me constantly on the move, giving me vitality and energy. The first years of my service were a stage of adaptation, acclimatisation and integration into a completely different way of life, thinking and managing situations,» she says.

In the first years Mrs. Tzoumerka served in Fire Stations and Fire Services in Attica, Crete, Ptolemaida, as a Shift Officer and Head of Investigation/Group/Security Departments. Furthermore, for three years she was an instructor at the Firefighters' School, while in the course of her career she served as a staff officer in Directorates of the Fire Brigade Headquarters. In the present period of time, due to a change in the administrative affiliation of OΣμηΕΑ, she is serving at the Regional Command of Fire Services of Attica, while she is also a trainer of new SmiEA operators at the Fire Academy.

The nature of their profession is such that difficulties are a major part of their daily life as they are required to carry them out promptly and efficiently at the lowest possible cost. «There are certainly several scars that have marked my fifteen-year career. The worst is the loss of life and a simple description is not enough to capture the magnitude of the emotions,» he explains. As he notes, a typical tour of duty is usually 24 hours, while unpredictable factors can extend the hours resulting in several days in the field.

In her 15-year career within the College, Ms.Tzoumerka has found that, even if slowly, there is a visible change in the way women are treated in the field, but in no working environment should there be any discrimination based on gender and origin. «Any discrimination of gender identification, origin and generally anything that labels and demarcates should not exist in any work environment. As a woman working in a workplace where the majority are men in the beginning you struggle to prove that you can do as well as your colleagues. As you progress you discover that the strength that complements you and the inspiration that drives you is not gendered, but is a «family affair».

Behaviors of people with anachronistic perceptions and stereotypes are clearly perpetuated, but they are not sufficient to paralyze or discourage a woman, since she is aware of her power. Rights, pay and duties are equal, but to this day it does not imply equality. A simple example is the misuse of the word «manning», when the correct term is «staffing». Even if slowly, the change is evident, since a large percentage of male colleagues respect, appreciate and cooperate harmoniously without discrimination and scruples, a component of success for maximum efficiency», she notes to APE-MPA, while sending her own message for 8 March.

Agathi - Evangelia Fouka - Anthypypyragos: «Women are not inferior to men in anything»

The firefighter, Agathi - Evangelia Fouka, decided to leave her hometown of Agrinio in 2017 and enter the Fire Academy as she describes to APE-MPA that from a young age she wanted to do a dynamic profession and especially something that she can offer to her fellow man, animals and the environment. As she explains, the focus of their actions, when they are called upon to manage a difficult incident or crisis, should be on safeguarding human life. «First and foremost, the human being and human life.

The actions taken in an incident must first be aimed at safety and rescuing people,» he says. Fuka observes that more and more women are opting for the security forces, a development she says has started to become visible in recent years. «I am very happy to see that this society is moving forward, even if only in small steps. There is a development is mostly visible in recent years, it may be small but it is there. I see more and more women in security forces. From colleagues I have not encountered any discrimination, they are always willing to show me things to teach me. I am very grateful for that and I am very happy. I'm sure some people are surprised when I tell them what kind of work I do. It seems strange to them, but most reactions are of admiration and positive surprise,» she says, sending her own message for Women's Day: «Women really are very capable beings. We can achieve anything we want, we are not inferior to men in any way , we can cope with anything. Don't give up, keep trying and you will achieve what you want.

Until 1995, the Fire Brigade had only men of all ranks. On October 31, 1995, with the 3rd series of Graduates (special procedure for the classification of graduates, mainly engineers from Polytechnics, directly to the rank of Lieutenant Firefighter), the first two women in the history of the Fire Brigade were enlisted. Dr. Kalliopi Saini, who is a Doctor of the Department of Aeronautical Engineering of the University of Patras and Adelaida Filippidou, a Mechanical Engineering graduate of NTUA. Dr. Kalliopi Saini, Chief Fire Officer, now in the Fire Brigade, is the first woman of the Fire Brigade, General Duty, to serve as a combat officer, Head of Department and Head of Division, while in January 2009 she became the first woman Senior General Duty Officer.