Shipboard Fire-Fighting Performance of Females and Males

Abstract

A study of fire-fighting performance was conducted as part of an ongoing effort to identify potential gender-based human engineering problems resulting from the recent introduction of women to shipboard assignments in the Navy. Results of experimental simulations of fire fighting with a CO₂ extinguisher and starting a P-250 pump were consistent with earlier questionnaire data, which indicated that females experienced difficulties with tasks requiring upper torso strength and grip strength. In the experiment, females registered significantly lower force values on the P-250 starter cord than did males, with lighter females exerting less force than heavier females. Females also exhibited a different pulling strategy than males did. Weight had no impact on the performance of males. The results revealed that 85% of the females and 5% of the males sampled would be incapable of starting the P-250 pump.