Fewer than 2 percent of full-time firefighters in Rhode Island are female, according to an Eyewitness News analysis of public safety employment data.
There are a total of 1,134,400 firefighters in the United States, but according to the National Fire Protection Association, only 7 percent of them are women. Out of the 20 full-time departments in Rhode Island we surveyed, 1.74 percent of their staff is female.
There are several municipalities that don’t have a single female on their roster, but we were able to talk to two women who work for the same city.
Sharon Corriveau and Katie Moore are two of three female firefighters working for the East Providence Fire Department. They say a lot of progress has been made in recent years, though there’s still more work to be done.