By: Elizabeth Miller
This Sunday, March 11, 2018, marks the 27th Annual Scott Firefighter Stairclimb. Held at the Columbia Center in downtown Seattle, this event is the world’s largest on-air Stairclimb competition event. The competition raises money to support The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. This year, 12 members of Valley Regional Fire Authority will be participating in the competition.
Climbing for a Cause
To successfully complete the competition, a climber must race up the 69 flights of stairs and 1,356 steps, a 788 feet vertical elevation, to reach the observation deck. This climb, done in full structural turnout gear while on-air, is symbolic of what cancer patients endure. Though the climb is strenuous in its own right, it pales in comparison to patient’s taxing journey.
The Scott Firefighter Stairclimb is limited to only firefighters, and each year is sold out. According to the event’s website, “In 2017, the event featured 2,000 firefighters from over 330 different departments and 9 different countries. This group of phenomenal climbers brought in a record $2.4 million for blood cancer research and patient services.”
The 12 members of VRFA come from the North Auburn headquarters Station 31, south Auburn Station 32, Pacific Station 38 and the administration and support divisions (which cover all station service areas). Donations to the Scott Firefighter Stairclimb are tax-deductible and can be made online at the VRFA team page.
Each climber is timed, and the results of the VRFA team will be posted after Sunday’s stairclimb.
Thanks for the article. This is a wonderful event. Having worked in Columbia Tower, I have always been amazed that anyone could run up the stairs all the way to the top. Our firefighters are awesome.
[…] March 10th 17 members of the Valley Regional Fire Authority participated in 28TH Annual LLS Scott Firefighter Stairclimb in Seattle. “We are happy that all 17 of our members who signed up were able to participate in the […]