The firefighting
championDr Sabrina Cohen-Hatton, 36, is one of
the most senior female firefighters in the
UK, and her research into firefighters’
safety has landed her ten international
scienceawards. Her book,The Heat Of
The Moment: Life And Death Decision-
Making From A Firefighter, is out nowBeingbrave doesn’t mean not being
afraid.It means doing somethingdespitebeing
afraid. When I was 15, I was homeless after my
fatherdied and family communications broke
down. I sold theBig Issueand slept rough, then
at 18, I joined the fire service. Now I’m aBig Issue
ambassador, helping to give people on the fringes
ofsociety a voice. Because I’d spent so long trying
to hide the fact I’d been homeless, the thought of
speakingabout it publicly made me nervous, but
yourcircumstances don’t define you. I’ve been
overwhelmed by the response from other women
insimilar situations, saying they now have hope.
The worst experiences shape you in
incredibleways. A few years into my career,
I responded to an incident in which my husband- also a firefighter – was nearly killed. It was the
mostdifficult experience because I was torn
betweenthe role of a loved one and the role of
a responder. He was fine, but our colleague was
badlyburned. In order to cope, I studied ways
of reducing human error to make firefighters
safer, studying all the way to PhD while
working. Our research – exploring how brains
work under pressure – changed national policy
and was adopted by all UK emergency services.
Mygoal is to challenge stereotypes.
This industry is just five per cent women, and
I want the role of a firefighter to appeal to more
of us. This isn’t because I believe in arbitrary
quotas, but because being a firefighter ishard
andwe need the very best. Being different
freed me from the constraints of a stereotype,
allowing me to not only push the boundaries but
also to create my own and make a real impact.
THIS PAGE: DRESS, LK BENNETT. OPPOSITE PAGE: DRESS, SPORTMAX; EARRINGS, MISHO
103Future Shapers