By Karla Ward
Lexington Herald-Leader
LEXINGTON, Ky. 鈥� When the nurses at local hospitals kept seeing identical twin firefighters Erin and Ashley Lucas working on ambulance runs with the Lexington Fire Department day after day, they grew a little concerned.
鈥淭hey鈥檙e like, 鈥楪ood Lord, do you ever take a break?鈥欌�� Erin Lucas said.
The nurses didn鈥檛 realize they were seeing double.
Erin and Ashley Lucas are the only set of twins on the staff of the Lexington Fire Department, and they said that sometimes makes work a little more interesting.
They鈥檙e among just 27 women on the Lexington Fire Department, which has a fire service staff of 562, said District Chief Derek Roberts.
Women made up just 4.4% of the nation鈥檚 in 2020, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The National Fire Protection Association said there were 17,200 women working as career firefighters that year, though the number of female was much higher, at 89,600.
As women in a male-dominated field, the Lucas twins said they feel good when they鈥檙e out on runs and girls or young women see them at work, and they want to encourage more women to go into the field.
鈥淵ou just have to have the heart and willpower,鈥� Ashley Lucas said. 鈥淒on鈥檛 be afraid to go out there and try whatever you want to.鈥�
鈥淓veryone鈥檚 treated the same,鈥� Erin said. 鈥淐ome on out.鈥�
Roberts said the Lexington Fire Department has worked in recent years to increase its female workforce by holding camps 鈥� named in honor of Lexington鈥檚 first Black female firefighter, 鈥� to introduce young women to the fire service. He said the fire department also supports the Fayette County Public Schools鈥� , which has a firefighting and EMS career pathway, and the department has tried to 鈥渋ncrease our name recognition鈥� by supporting its male and female Firefighter Combat Challenge teams.
鈥淭his is no secret, but the job of the traditional fire service has been a white male dominated workforce for a long time,鈥� Roberts said in an email. 鈥淚 know we as a department are more aware of that fact and are working to recruit and attract a more diverse workforce across the board and a workforce that more accurately reflects our community.鈥�
Erin Lucas said she likes 鈥済iving back to the community we grew up in.鈥�
The sisters grew up in Lexington and graduated from Paul Laurence Dunbar High school. They attended Midway University and both worked for AMR, which provides ambulance services, before joining the fire department.
While everyone on the fire department is equipped to work as a firefighter and an EMT, there are also areas of specialty, and working as a paramedic is the path both sisters have chosen.
Erin Lucas said she鈥檚 always known she wanted to be a paramedic, and she enjoys the variety the work offers.
鈥淣o day鈥檚 the same,鈥� she said. 鈥淵ou never know what you鈥檙e going to walk into.鈥�
While Erin joined the department in 2018 and has since become a paramedic, Ashley came aboard three years ago and is in the department鈥檚 paramedic training program now.
鈥淎s an EMT you can only do so much,鈥� Ashley said. Becoming a paramedic will allow her to handle procedures EMTs can鈥檛.
Ultimately, Erin said she aspires to become a lieutenant, where she could 鈥渢ake everything I鈥檝e learned ... and pass it down to other generations who are going to be applying and coming out to this department.鈥�
She recently was part of the fire department鈥檚. While the crews change frequently, depending on who is working, she and her co-workers told WKYT they enjoy a close relationship.
鈥淢ost times, you don鈥檛 even have to communicate. You go out on a call, and your crew knows what you want and knows what you need,鈥� Erin Lucas told the television station.
The sisters live together, but they don鈥檛 necessarily see a lot of each other at work. One works first shift, and the other works second. Ashley is assigned to Station 14 on Versailles Road , while Erin is at Station 5 on Third Street .
鈥淚t kind of works out,鈥� Erin said.
鈥淚鈥檓 blessed to be at a good house,鈥� Ashley said. 鈥淚鈥檓 enjoying how close-knit we are.鈥�
The sisters have an especially close bond.
As twins, Ashley said, 鈥測ou鈥檙e either close or not. We do everything together.鈥�
But the sisters said they also have a tight-knit relationship with their co-workers, who have also become like family.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a lot of fun,鈥� Erin said.
鈥淚 loved how it was family-oriented,鈥� Ashley said. 鈥淭hey made me feel at home.鈥�
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