First all-female fire crew in 20 years on-call

An all-female fire crew has begun to respond to emergencies in a market town, a fire service has said.

The five on-call firefighters are based at Abingdon fire station in Oxfordshire.

They are the county's first female crew for 20 years, according to Oxfordshire Fire and Rescue Service.

Chief fire officer Rob MacDougall said he hoped more female applicants would join the county's contingent of 56 operational women.

Watch manager Rebecca Rimmer was in the county's first all-female crew based in Faringdon.

She said: "We had to go that extra mile to prove we were just as capable as the men in dealing with the daily physical and mental challenges the role entails.

"It's taken longer than I expected to see another all-female crew in place, but we've got there and now I hope the Abingdon team will inspire more women to consider a role as an on-call firefighter.

"A flexible work pattern can be put in place to work around family commitments, career or studies, or indeed a full-time firefighter."

Abingdon has 17 on-call firefighters as well as a full-time staff of 10 men and two women.

A mixture of training and availability has enabled the five female firefighters to crew an appliance together for the first time.

One of the team, Emily Potter, said: "We've worked incredibly hard to gain the necessary skills so we can respond together as an all-female crew."

Her colleague, mother-of-three Karen Bellcourt, said: "Working alongside my female colleagues as part of the wider Abingdon crew is both an honour and a privilege."

The other on-call crew members are Anastasia Osborne, Kayleigh Williams and Maria Alegria.

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