Caitlin Crandall’s morning routine looked much different a couple of years ago.

The 35-year-old went from working 9-5 at a desk to 24 hours for the Syracuse Fire Department at Station 5, preparing to save lives.

“Life was just so blah and just so mundane,” said Crandall. “Something just clicked for me. This is what I need to do to feel fulfilled in life. I need to be doing more.”

Crandall didn’t know anything about firefighting, but she knew there was a sense of pride, camaraderie and commitment that she wanted to be a part of. She became 1 of the 13 women within the 338-person department.

“I am proud to be a female firefighter,” said Crandall. “However, being a female does not take precedence over the synergy that my guys and I have together. We all have the same job. There’s a job that needs to be done.”

Chief Michael Monds says women make up about 4 percent of the department, meeting the national average.

“The females bring a perspective that is needed in the fire service,” said Monds.

Monds says he’s been pushing to diversify the department since he became chief in 2018. He’s the first to promote a woman to district chief in the department and would like to see more take on the job and rise through the ranks.

“I think the biggest hurdle is the females being accepted by their male counterparts,” said Monds. “Our occupation really hasn’t been diverse with females. But, as long as the firefighter is able to perform the task, that’s the most important thing.”

“The challenges I face as a female was definitely just the brute strength that’s required to do this job, the physical part of this job,” said Crandall. “I needed to put on a lot of muscle and get a lot stronger.”

Monds says recruitment efforts and the civil service create challenges too, which they continue to revamp. Right now, they have about a dozen women to interview and hope to fill 28 spots in January.

“I would absolutely recommend for young females and other girls to look into this, not only because of the camaraderie that you have, but just the fulfillment,” said Crandall. “Helping people on a daily basis [and] learning something…I leave and I feel fulfilled, like I’m a part of something.”

Reminding women that even in this male-dominated field, they can climb the ladder and fight any fire, too.