Four women were among the 286 graduates of the FDNY Fire Academy Tuesday, boosting the number of female firefighters in the department to the highest level in 32 years.
The FDNY now boasts 41 women firefighters, matching what it had in 1982 when a court order required the nation’s largest fire department open its doors to women.
“It’s a big day for us,” said Sarinya Srisakul, president of the United Women Firefighters.
Officials said 45% of those who graduated at the Christian Culture Center in Brooklyn are minorities — including 48 African-Americans, 70 Hispanics and 10 Asians. Three of the women graduates are also minorities.
A hundred of the graduates were military veterans.
Graduate Antoinette Proctor, 33, of Brooklyn, a former Marine, said the keys to becoming a firefighter include guts and determination.
“The beginning, the middle and the end; the whole thing was hard,” Proctor said.
Giselle King, 33, of Brooklyn said she’s excited about being part of the crew at Engine Co. 15 in the Lower East Side.
“I pushed myself to the limits,” King said. “I’m really just reaping the benefits right now.”
King passed along some advice to women contemplating joining the FDNY.
“I just encourage you to be your best in your darkest moments,” King said. “When you think you can’t do it, if you just keep pushing forward, you don’t know what you can accomplish.”
Also graduating was Charlotte Shannon, 24 — daughter of Firefighter Kevin Shannon, a 9/11 hero ; and Vanessa Schoening, 27, of Queens.
“I couldn’t do this without my mom. She’s been my solid rock,” said Schoening, who will be assigned Engine Co. 33 in SoHo.
Retired Fire Capt. Brenda Berkman, a member of the fire academy class of 1982, noted that only 0.4% of the FDNY’s 10,500 firefighters are women.
“There are no rational explanations for the low number of women on the department other than discrimination,” Berkman told the crowd.
“We have a chance now to really start a new chapter in the history of the FDNY,” Berkman said. “It’s a benefit to the fire department to have a diverse workforce.”
Mayor de Blasio congratulated the graduates and their families.
“As a family man myself, I can only imagine, particularly for the mothers and fathers of these graduates, the pride you’re feeling at this extraordinary moment,” de Blasio told the graduates.
The mayor also praised outgoing Fire Commissioner Salvatore Cassano, saying, “someone who gives their life to this department is someone special.”
Cassano thanked the graduates on behalf of all New Yorkers for “being ready to save people’s lives no matter what the risk.”