Copyright 2006 The Baltimore Sun Company
By NANCY JONES-BONBREST
The Baltimore Sun
Donyea Ennals
Firefighter/paramedic apprentice
Baltimore Fire Department, Federal Hill
Age --20
Years in business --1 1/2 years.
Salary --$29,500 a year. (After 18 months, her salary will be $35,100 a year, and at the end of her three-year apprenticeship she will earn $47,300. After five years, Ennals will make the maximum base salary, currently $48,500.)
How she started --While a student at Walbrook High School, Ennals attended the Baltimore City Fire/EMS Academy (now called the Homeland Security Academy). It is for students interested in pursuing a job in firefighting and emergency medical professions. After graduating, she applied to the fire academy. At the end of her three-year apprenticeship, she can determine if she will pursue a career as a firefighter or paramedic.
Typical day --Ennals works a rotating schedule of two 10-hour days and two 14-hour nights each week. She typically works out of Engine 2 in Federal Hill but must call the night before each shift to verify the firehouse where she will work. If she is not responding to a call, other work includes home visits in the neighborhood, building inspections, cleaning duties at the firehouse and training. She does not have to suit up for every call; the siren has a special tone to indicate if it’s a fire call. When a call comes in, she is one of a four-person team. She rides on the back of the fire engine as the leadoff man (charged with connecting the hose with the hydrant) or pipe man (advances the line into the fire). Firefighters are certified emergency medical technicians and must respond to many medical assist calls, depending on the situation.
Physical ability --"There’s a lot of lifting, especially with patients.”
On driving the fire engine --Ennals said she is still in training. “It takes time. I’m not comfortable with it yet. I still have a lot of work to do.”
The good --"I like helping people.”
The bad --She continues in training as an Emergency Medical Technician Intermediate, so she says it’s challenging. “People will look up to me in an incident and I have to tell them what to do. I just need to be confident and take one call at a time.”
The danger --"I’ve been scared going into a fire. From my understanding, every firefighter has been scared at one time or another. But one good thing is you are never by yourself. If you have the knowledge, training and skills, you should be comfortable.”
On being new --Ennals said it’s not hard to become part of the team. “When you’re in a fire, no one knows how long you’ve been in. You can’t even tell who a person is when they have all their gear on.”
On being a woman in a male-dominated job --"I think I set an example for people and I’m a role model for people.”
Philosophy on the job --"Keep an open mind because you never know what kind of incident you might respond to. Keep a positive attitude.”