The guardian angels of Mogale City
Krugersdorp's very own heroines hope their story will inspire many other women in town.
Many brave men and women go beyond the call of duty to keep residents of Mogale City safe. Some even go as far as putting their own lives at risk.
Phillipine Kubeka and Maithamako Moswete are two perfect examples of strong women who have shown relentless strength, bravery and dedication in their job.
The Krugersdorp News recently sat down with them for an exclusive interview where they spoke of all the ups and downs that come with working as women in emergency services.
Both were also part of the West Rand Municipality Emergency Services’ n’Zuri team that impressed at the Toughest Firefighter Alive (TFA) competition last month. They both excelled at representing the West Rand and recognised the importance of women fulfilling the role of saviour and protector.
“Working as a woman in emergency services is challenging because a lot of people believe or think it is a man’s job only considering the heavy equipment we use. Yet people tend to forget that dynamite comes in small packages,” Phillipine expressed.
Maithamako shared the same sentiments saying not only can women do the work men do but they work even harder at times.
“Being a firefighter as a woman is not easy. The job requires great strength and are we as women judged even before starting? Besides the physical side of things you also need to be mentally strong.”
Having excelled at the TFA competition last month the women are proud of their achievements but admitted their road to success was not easy at all.
“Competing was not easy and we have a strict training schedule as well as a balanced diet. I had to change my lifestyle and let go of some of the things I used to do, even my sleeping pattern changed, it’s a game changer because it allowed me to be better. Another challenge was being judged as women, most people have this mindset that women can’t lead or they won’t be under the leadership of a female,” Phillipine said.
Despite these obstacles, the women still went on to be the shining light of their team during the tournament being very instrumental to the n’Zuri team’s success. Phillipine achieved first place in the open relay team making her the best female runner with a run time of four minutes. Whereas Maithamako achieved gold in the overall results.
The women still hope to fly higher as they hope to accomplish more as they progress in their profession.
“I would like to continue developing my skills and knowledge to be able to take on more responsibility within the company,” Phillipine said.
Maithamako also hopes to develop her skills and share her knowledge and give guidance to many young people who hope to put themselves in their firing line to help their community.
