CONCORD, N.C. — Many fire departments across the state are having a hard time finding firefighters.

Officials say people aren't applying at the same rate they used to. But for some, including the Concord Fire Department, there are more female firefighters than ever before.

The department doubled the amount of female firefighters over the past six years. It now has a separate women's locker and restroom in its new facility, which it didn't have before. But even now, there are only 10 women out of a total of 231 firefighters.

One of them is Aprill King, who, at 36, gave up a more typical 9-to-5 job and a bigger paycheck as an executive assistant to pursue her passion for fighting fires and saving lives.

"After over eight years, I kind of looked at my myself one day going, 'I want to be doing more; there's something more I've got to be doing. I've got a higher calling, what is it?'" King said.

When she decided her calling was firefighting, she didn't let her age hold her back.

"When I went into rookie school, I was 36. There was one guy in there who was 18. I was double his age and still had to do every requirement," she said.

Almost seven years later, as she drives a firetruck and works with more women, she says gender doesn't matter when it comes to saving lives.

"In the middle of the night and your house is on fire and your loved one is the one I have to pick up, you don't care who I am as long as I can save that person," she said. "We constantly train, we constantly study, we constantly are practicing, so when you call us on our worst day, we're able to perform at our best."

In Charlotte, fire officials say out of the 1,100 firefighters they have, 41 are women. 

If you're interested in becoming a firefighter, check your local fire department's openings. 

Volunteer firefighters are also needed. Out of the more than 48,000 firefighters in the state, the N.C. Association of Fire Chiefs says over 31,000 are volunteers.