Moultrie Technical College student Emily Thompson, right, stands proudly at the podium with her gold medal signifying her first place win in the fire fighting competition at the 2008 SkillsUSA Post-Secondary Conference held in Dublin, Georgia, in April.

TIFTON , GA. Just a little over a year and a half ago, Moultrie Technical College Fire Science Technology diploma graduate Emily Thompson became the first and only female firefighter ever hired to tackle hot blazes in the Tifton-Tift County area. That was September 2006, and Thompson hasn’t slowed down since.

Working full time as a firefighter at the Tifton-Tift County Fire Department, Thompson, 22, is required to work 48 hours on and 96 off. She continues taking Fire Science classes at night through Moultrie Tech’s Tifton campus in pursuit of additional credentials and hopes to complete those by the end of 2008.

However, Thompson’s red hot skills aren’t just reserved for the fire station or the classroom. In mid-April at Heart of Georgia Technical College in Dublin she put those skills to the test against her Fire Science peers from other technical colleges from the state in the 2008 SkillsUSA Post-Secondary Conference and came away the victor.

Thompson won first place in the fire fighting competition through a battery of three written tests in basic fire fighting and hazardous materials, as well as an oral interview and a grueling physical test.

Her aptitude in fire fighting techniques was judged through demonstrations at eight different stations at 100 feet apart. Station events included dressing in “turnout” gear and breathing apparatus in just two minutes; stair climbing of eight evolutions to the third floor of a building; 150-foot water hose dragging for 250 feet; carrying 50 pounds of fire fighting equipment for 150 feet; raising and extending a 24-foot ladder; forcible building entry with a steel block and hammer; and victim search and rescue in a building with no visibility and numerous obstacles.

Thompson says of the SkillsUSA competition, “Being a firefighter is physical. I compete to keep myself motivated to be physically fit and to meet other firefighters from all over the state.”

Originally from Shreveport, Louisiana, with a move to Athens, Georgia, at the age of seven, Thompson, now calls Tifton “home”. But she will hit the road to the Midwest United States this summer.

Her first place finish at the state level has garnered Thompson the opportunity to compete in Kansas City, Missouri, in June at the 2008 SkillsUSA National Conference. She will travel with Moultrie Tech’s other first place winners in various competitions as well as the college’s SkillsUSA advisors.

“Win or lose, I will be with the Fire Science students who are the best in their states…all together at Nationals…and that is really cool,” says Thompson.

MTC Fire Science instructor Robert McLean says of Thompson, “Emily has been a hard-working individual.  She is dedicated to the fire service and has complete dedication to education and training here at MTC.  Emily has the fire service at heart and will never give up on anything that is put before her. Even when she is mentally and physically exhausted, she still finds a way to achieve her goal by adapting and overcoming any and everything.  She knows that someday she may be put in the same situations in the community to rescue or save a citizen’s life or have to rescue one of her fellow brother or sister firefighters…and if she never gives up in training, she will never give up on the actual fire scene.”