As I entered the station all the firefighters and officers I met were men, not a woman in sight, which did make me feel out of place.

Being a female firefighter does put you in the minority. Red Watch has just two female fire fighters and that is more than most.

But the atmosphere I felt in those first few minutes was soon to disappear.

The biggest thing I noticed while I was part of the brigade was the strong sense of being part of a team, even after a short space of time.

From the rows of photographs of falling-out parades over the years to the camaraderie in the dining hall at breakfast. Everyone looks after everyone else, regardless of whether you are male or female.

After role call I was assigned to a specific fire engine.

There were several shouts during the first hour and I will admit the adrenalin did start to pump as other crews flew out of the station leaving me wondering when it wound be my turn.

On their return we began drill in the yard, the one thing I had been dreading.

Steve who joined the brigade more than a year ago took me through some of the procedures prospective candidates have to complete.

Hose running was the first. The hoses are about 25 metres long and have a specific way of being rolled up and down. To pass the entry test you must be able to run out six lengths of hose in eight minutes.

This sounds simple but when the hoses are made-up they do weigh quite a lot and holding them at shoulder height to enable you to role them out as quickly as possible does take practice.

This must all be done in full kit which restricts your movement and makes you very hot.

Despite my worries I completed the tasks and I think with a little practice would have been able to do it in the required time.

It was shortly after this that the alarm sounded and my pump was required to go out on my first shout.

We were already kitted out so were out of the station and roaring up the road in what seemed like seconds.