A Tempe fire truck arrives on the scene of a car accident. By Bryn Bailer
The Girl Scouts of Southern Arizona this weekend will host “Catching Fury," a hands-on camp to get girls interested in careers in public safety.
Firefighting and police work are male-dominated careers, and the camp will show girls they have what it takes to do jobs that local public safety agencies need them to do.
Seventeen-year-old Annika Morken wants to work in law enforcement. She took part in Catching Fury as a middle schooler, in the weeklong Camp Fury as a high schooler, and will be back to serve as a squad leader this weekend.
“We’re doing scary things, and things that need to be done in groups, and things that you can’t get done unless you’re encouraging each other – which is being part of a team," Annika said.
Girls learn to roll out, connect and work with with a heavy-duty fire hose, rappel a building, and execute a high-stakes search warrant with mock firearms.
"It’s not for the faint of heart," said Allie Healy, Girl Scouts’ program coordinator.
“Catching Fury is an intensely physical day. We treat them like recruits of firefighting and police officers,” she said.
This year 38 girls will participate. In Tucson, 5 percent of firefighters are women, which is more than the national average.
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