Thread by @DisasterKenya

@NMS_Kenya @InteriorKE @KenyaGovernors Yes it can be done & Female Emergency Responders are some of the finest wing-men anyone can wish for, on ground zero. It is time, Kenya went full out to have Female Firefighters in our Fire Brigade rank & file.Thread
euronews.com/2018/06/23/fem…

When I joined hands with the Late Jean Francois Antoine (RIP) & his son Dominique Antoine, to start Urban Fire Services, Kenya's 1st Private Fire Service in 2002. It was not a cake walk. Especially with the obstacles, the then Nairobi City Council Fire Service threw at us.

From sheer malice, to denial of use of fire hydrants the list of hardships was a long one. Prompting the audience with the then City Council Honcho. Mayor Joe Aketch. Our only crime was, outshining the Nairobi Fire Brigade aka Zima wa Kanjo, with their ineptitude.

What was actually stopping a full out hatred filled war thrown at us by Zima wa Kanjo, was my background & personal relationship between Mayor Aketch, my elder brother Noordinne Taib & the public, who were warming up to us giving Kanjo a run for their money. Showing em how to.

What had started in an industrial area go-down with 2 rehabilitated KAA Renault Sides Fire Engines bought in an auction, soon became the talk of the town. With a fully fledged Fire Station at Ruaka, a Mini one at Serena, 3 engines, an ambulance & a Rapid Intervention Vehicle-RIV.

Covering the TPS Serena group, Jubilee Insurance, Village Mkt, HFCK & the UN on a monthly retainer, extending free response to Road Accident victims as a part of our Corporate Social Responsibility. Along with support from @JimmiGathu then @Kiss100kenya built us remarkably.

Prompt response was the key to our success. Then came clients like Carnivore with coverage for their events, KFF international matches, ICRAF, Safaricom & GM Kenya. As well as the recruitment of female Firefighters, trained in-house, & who run the whole 9 yards like all of us.

Eunice Kagure an Ex-NYS electrician, Susan Mbithe an Ex-Hotelier & Ann Gitonga now a crew manager at the G4S Fire Service, who later bought Urban Fire Services. Joined the ranks. Trained with their male brothers, did drill with them, morning runs & exiled out of commitment.

Like I said, yes it can be done & we did it. “It’s all about the mentorship. Without the direction & guidance of those who have come before us ( both from @KenyaAirports & 3 retired KDF officers),there is no way that Urban Fire Services would have conquered the odds against us''.

The main message here is simple, we can’t do the job alone. Whether you are a woman or a man, you are going to need the advice & guidance that is needed in every profession to succeed & thrive.”
“The thing about mentors is they believe in you more than you believe in yourself.”

“They have guided me throughout my over 35 years in Civo-Military Aviation, UN-ICAO, Search & Rescue, Response & Saving Lives. Right around my 5th year in Civilian Aviation, I realized, that I wanted to be like some of my mentors & start giving back. I owe them quite a bit.

“You are never going to be good enough to some of the people that may view you in a certain way. Whether it is due to stereotypes or their own implicit basis. It was a big learning experience for me that this is not about winning a popularity contest, it’s about being respected.

And in order to get that respect, you have to know your job. I engrossed myself in all the training classes & worked at the busy stations International as much as possible, after I left Kenya & joined the UN, to build up that experience & continue my life long education.

I challenged my self & overcame some unpleasant aspects like racism. I proved to myself that I do belong. I built on my experiences as much as possible; because there is never a day we stop learning.
As the old saying goes, '' the day we stop learning is the day we retire.”

You have to realize that, though a thankless job back in Kenya, where people get in,when there is nothing else. It is rewarding,albeit incredibly physically demanding.
A calling that draws on your emotion, mental, spiritual & physical well being.But is incredibly satisfying.

“You have to be the hardest working responder there is. Because the harder you work the luckier you get. You have to be willing to roll up those sleeves & give it your all. There is nothing that any of the women out there can’t do, if they are willing to really put in the work.”

Eunice Kagure, Susan Mbithe & Ann Gitonga did it, becoming the first ever in Kenya. So can any other female. Yes, women can do it & at times better than the men who have for ages populated the profession.

Pitfalls such as physical obstacles including upper body strength & cardio respiratory endurance. Candidate Physical Ability Tests (CPAT). The overall physical aspect of the job. Mental obstacles including worrying about nothing & wasting valuable energy. Can be easily overcome.

As can, allowing other people’s views & biases to interfere with one's ability to do the job. It is not about winning a popularity contest, it is about being respected.

The take away here is, you can’t do this job alone. All any woman needs to do if interested is, seek a Mentor for advice & guidance. Visit local fire stations. Visit trainings where possible.
Build up job specific knowledge.
Get involved in a physical fitness program.

You have to be the hardest working firefighter out of anybody that you know. Never stop learning. In order to earn respect, you have to know your job. It is a hard job & it gets more difficult if a person is not in shape.

For women to be included in the mainstream Fire Services in Kenya, as able bodied. The powers that be, must begin with eradicating their stone age biases & misogynistic mentality.
We are one of the few countries on earth with a Female 2 Star General, why not a Female fire chief?

That Kenya has less than 10 Female firefighters, let alone less than 1000 in total firefighters, Nationally to cater for a population nearing 50 Million people is deplorable. What is so unique about being a firefighter, that excludes women @StateHouseKenya ?

We like I said have a Woman 2 star general in our ranks, have just sworn in the first ever female Chief Justice in Kenya, Have a female NYS Commandant, as well as various others, in the command structure of our disciplined forces. Why then don't we have them in our Fire Services?

@StateHouseKenya @InteriorKE NYS is a priceless recruitment pool. Ready made female graduates, who already possess the most important basic ingredient in fire fighting, that of discipline, exist in hundreds.
Why then are they not being employed by Counties to fill existing gaps?

58 years, since 1963 with all our genius, Kenya still lacks a formal & accredited institution to train Fire & Rescue personnel.
Some may argue we have one in Kiambu thanks to the Polish Govt.
Beggars not having choices or looking a gift horse in the mouth aside. It is standard?

The Kiambu facility lacks various equipment & or facilities, key in the training & certification of firefighters & or first responders to the required internationally acceptable proficiency standards.
Can a Pole trained in Kiambu, be accepted as proficient qualified in Poland?

To accommodate a proper fully-fledged training institution a minimum of 7-10 acres of land is required to host the said. From training towers, SCBA, flash over, water rescue to simple scale & execute scaffolds & platforms. The list of anomalies with the Kiambu gift is massive.

NYS can again come in handy, hosting it, were the Govt serious in eradicating our shortfall. This would in turn save the likes of KPA. KPC, KAA, KDF & even Counties, billions spent sending officers to Singapore & Fire Service College U.K, where I trained, thanks to the taxpayers.

@StateHouseKenya Those of us out in the Diasporan aside. Kenya has enough Internationally able instructors the likes of Chief (s) Joseph Maina, Felix Wachira Kahora & Prof, Maria Nzomo's kid brother Alfred Murathe wasting around. However, is anyone bothered, let alone listening?

Mr. President Sir, what better legacy to leave behind than such an institution to develop our capabilities locally ?
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