Dräger is donating self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) and helmets to the ‘Fire Angels’, two female firefighters who will be attempting seven marathons, in seven days, across seven continents – while wearing firefighter kit – as part of the ‘Great World Race’. The challenge is a part of their ongoing ambition to ‘change the narrative of what it means to be a girl’.
The intrepid pair have already successfully skied across the Antarctic, pioneering a new route, in 52 days, 10 hours and 30 minutes. After a short period of rest, the team realised the work they had done in fundraising and raising awareness for women’s issues was not over:
“When we got back, I thought I’d never want to leave my home comforts again,” says Georgina Gilbert, of the South Wales Fire and Rescue Service and one half of the dynamic duo. “However, it didn’t take long before I started thinking about what else we could do to challenge gender stereotypes and help build women’s self-esteem and confidence.”
The marathons are planned for a seven-day period in November, in the following sequence: Wolf’s Fang (Antarctica); Cape Town (South Africa); Perth (Australia); two in Istanbul (one in Asia and the second in Europe); Cartagena (South America); and Miami (North America).
Georgina adds that it was important to do the challenge in their firefighting kit: “We need more firefighting female role models to demonstrate what a rewarding career it can be for women. We could not miss the opportunity to visually showcase the female firefighter role across all seven continents.”
Dräger is donating two PSS® AirBoss SCBA with Nano Compressed Air Cylinders as they offer best in class ergonomics and are incredibly light. The donated helmets will be from the HPS® SafeGuard range, which at just 1.25kg in its basic configuration, provide optimal protection with the highest levels of wearer comfort.
Liz Millward, Marketing Manager Emergency and Rescue Services Dräger, says the Fire Angels are an inspiration: “We jumped at the chance to support two women proving themselves to be such extraordinary role models for current and would-be female firefighters, as well as women more generally,” she says.
“Firefighters might not usually run marathons wearing firefighting equipment, but their roles do require them to wear them for long periods of time in high heat and stress environments.”
Liz says that designing for diversity is also important, making sure that equipment is as comfortable as possible for all genders and ethnicities: “This Great World Race challenge is an exciting opportunity to showcase the ergonomic benefits of AirBoss and SafeGuard,” she adds.
Fire Angel Rebecca Openshaw-Rowe, of the Mid and West Wales Fire Service, has previously rowed for Great Britain and competed in the Rugby World Cup and Six Nations for Wales. She says being a female has never limited her:
“Both this challenge and the Antarctic one are predominantly completed by men. In fact, it was extremely difficult to find insurance for a woman to do the Antarctic challenge,” she says. “However, women are built for endurance and indeed pain, and I am passionate about being a good example for other women and girls and hope my achievements and life experiences will show there are no boundaries.”
The Fire Angels will base themselves on Dräger’s stand for September’s ESS show. To find out more about the Fire Angel’s endeavours and achievements, and how you can support them, click here.
Click here to find out more about PSS® AirBoss SCBA and here for the HPS® SafeGuard range.
