Denver Firefighter Changes Field Tradition, Hits 2.5 Million TikTok Views

Denver has one of the largest numbers of female firefighters in the nation. These women are joining forces through a group called Women’s Firefighters of Denver.

Several of the dozens of WFFD women told CBS this month about what brought them together.

Firefighter Rainie Santillanes has been with the Denver Fire Department for over a year. She says it’s always been her dream to become a firefighter.

“I was a bad kid. I set my grandmother’s rose bush on fire and I believe[the 20th Fire Department]actually reacted to it. They just told me, ‘To start a fire is It’s bad, it can hurt a lot of people,’ ”That’s kind of what got me hooked,” Santillanes said.

Santillanes says he is proud to be part of WFFD. This is an employee resource group dedicated to advocating and advancing women firefighters.

Denver’s female firefighters make up about 8% of the department, which may seem low, but it has one of the highest percentages of female firefighters in the nation.

“We are in the minority within the sector,” explained WFFD President Elaine Higginbotham.

According to her, the group was formed when her job required her to address certain things by women for women.

WFFD has worked to advocate for workplaces that better serve the needs of women. Issues such as pregnancy, maternity leave, different training techniques, and mentoring other women have all been discussed and advocated within the group. Three years ago, WFFD also worked to purchase properly fitted uniforms for female firefighters.

WFFD is not only recognized by the community, but this ‘girl power’ is now recognized globally. With more than 2.5 million views on his Tik Tok channel, Denver firefighters are changing traditional ways of doing things in the field.
https://www.tiktok.com/@dfdwomen

“I think we are expanding nationally in terms of what we can do to promote women’s success not just in Denver, but across the country,” said WFFD co-founder Carly Helwick. said.