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Show Thursday, April 25,1996 77ie Parr Record C-5 Park City Profile Lizzie Sharp can't resist the call of the wild Sharp is the name, firefighting is the game. By Nan Chalat-Noaker OF THE RECORD STAFF Halfway through dental hygiene school Lizzie Sharp knew she had made a serious mistake. "But dad already paid my tuition," she explains. So Sharp made a valiant effort to finish the course and land a job in a dentist's office. Admittedly Sharp had just spent the better part of a decade living the carefree life of a ski bum in Park City and it was high time to "start a career in something." She returned home to Carmel, Calif, in 1984 to buckle down but quickly learned, dental work just wasn't her cup of tea. "I couldn't stand it," she remembers. "I hated looking look-ing down people's throats and most of all I couldn't bear being locked up in a little cubicle from 9 to 5. It just didn't fit my personality. personali-ty. I had to be outside." Then, one day, a simple good deed opened up a whole new world for the disenchanted dental a If I go into a structure struc-ture fire with a partner, I want him to be confident I can carry him out if need be." Lizzie Sharp assistant. Sharp had walked across the street from her home with a box of canned goods for the local fire 'station's Christmas food drive for the homeless. "I ended up spending the afternoon talking to all the guys about being a firefighter firefight-er and they convinced me to put in an application." Sharp remembers being pretty sure she wouldn't get the job, but, just in case she was called for an interview, Sharp enrolled in an advanced first aid class. From then on everything fell into place and before long she shed her white hygienist's smock for a fire coat, helmet and work boots. This time around $rfarp knew She had. made the right decision. Sharp's first assignment was as a volunteer firefighter for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. Her beat included Carmel and Pebble Beach and ironically her first major fire was in the science lab at her alma mater, Carmel High School. "Our engine was the first one on the scene and we had to be careful because there were a lot of hazardous materials in the science room. There were explosions going off the whole time." After the fire was out Sharp realized she was hooked on fire-fighting. fire-fighting. "I always was a tomboy growing up. I liked working around big trucks and I liked the camraderie of the fire department. We were like a family." Sharp enrolled at Monterey Peninsula College and received EMT certification. The next step was to go for a degree in fire science sci-ence but before completing that course she returned to Park City to visit friends and family. As luck would have it there was a help wanted ad in the newspaper for an assistant fire warden. Once again Sharp's life took an unexpected unex-pected turn. She took the job and has been rising in Utah's wild land fire ranks ever since. Sharp is currently the district fire warden for all of Summit County. As incident commander she helps to coordinate the efforts of the three area fire districts for all fires in wildland areas. When not actively active-ly fighting fires Sharp inspects outlying out-lying subdivisions for potential trouble areas and maps out plans for potential wildland fire emergencies. emer-gencies. She is the first local fire warden to be hired year-round by the state and says she spends much of the off season conducting hazard haz-ard analyses and helping to train local volunteers. Next month Sharp is scheduled to train 66 prison inmates about fire supres-sion supres-sion techniques. In Utah inmate crews are .often called out by the state to help fight wild land fires. Although she misses working in a fire station and going out on medical calls, Sharp said she enjoys her current job. The biggest, and I if ' ..... - ' jMieaW.-....yst ,., .... -r. ... v , A ... ,;' . v., -.. T'.f.'Vr" . T x ;-'' f f , i f' 1 t '' - . ' , ? "- I ' i i r " 1 :' ' '" i if ' " V-NV' ' , J ' ' I' tJ ' ' ' - ! ' -&m v ' , . , ; ' 1' X Nan Chalal-NoakerPark Record District Fire Warden Lizzie Sharp says she has found her true calling fighting wildland fires in Summit County i i f v" I couldn't bear being locked up in a little cubicle from 9 to 5.. .I had to be outside. " Lizzie Sharp most unpredictable hazard each summer, she said, is lightning. "Of course it always happens up on top of a mountain where there is no road access and you end up hiking up a steep" slope with all of your gear." Sharp is currently the only woman fire warden in Utah and admits sometimes she runs into resistance from veteran male fire fighters. But these days, she said, women firefighters are required to pass all of the same requirements as the men. "And that's only fair. If I go into a structure fire with a partner, I want him to be confident I can carry him out if need be." In the meantime, though, she says, "I've had my share of shaving cream poured into my helmet." This spring Sharp believes Summit County may be headed for a dangerous fire season. Last summer's sum-mer's wet onset was ideal for tall grasses and brush which, she said, is still on the ground. That along with the increasing number of subdivisions sub-divisions spreading into heavily forested areas, has her worried. "Summit Park is scary, Tollgate Canyon is scary. There is so much urban interface in Summit County now. The probability of homes or cabins getting involved is high." To help mitigate the problem, Sharp is working with local planners to insure the roads in new subdivisions subdivi-sions are wide enough and durable enough to accommodate fire equipment. While working to educate the public about preventing wildland fires. Sharp admits to a real adrenaline adren-aline rush when she goes out on a fire. And there isn't much that scares her. She can tolerate the heat, the smoke and the long hours but admits to one phobia. "I'm petrified of snakes." Nevertheless she is willing to face that risk rather than give up fire fighting. "Once you become a fire fighter it gets in your blood." ! . " . J: Located in the prestigious Silver Lake area of Deer Valley is this luxuirous home with gorgeous gor-geous panoramic views of Bald Mountain, Jupiter Peak and the city lights of Park City. The ski trails are right out your door! Reduced to $1,695,000 In Mountain Ridge, approx. 4055 sq. ft. Four bedrooms & four baths with lovely southern exposure, slate tile in the entry and master bath. Cathedral ceilings on main level and maple flooring throughout. $750,000 LYMPUS CONSTRUCTION. t.c On the fairway at Jeremy Ranch. Approx. 5127 sq. ft. Nine and ten foot ceilings, alder cabinets in the kitchen and bathrooms. 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