THREE FORKS — The Firefighter Stair Climb at Seattle's Columbia Center is known to be the world's largest stair climb competition, with firefighters wearing all of their gear.
"We climbed over 69 flights of stairs in full gear, breathing apparatus, all for raising money for blood cancer research,” said Charles Eastty, who is the assistant chief of the Three Forks Fire Department.
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Chief Eassty is no stranger to the event, which raises money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.
“My first time climbing was about 10 years ago and the first time you do it, it's definitely a shock to your system. You learn what you're in for,” said Eassty.
And this year was no different.
“I just keep coming back and every one of our team members will get down and they will be like, 'This sucks, this is the worst thing ever.' But we see the impact that it does and the impact that it makes on blood cancer survivors and that's honestly the real reason why we keep coming back,” said Eastty.
This year, the firefighters climbed for someone special.
“It kind of does hit home a little bit and this year we climbed for Ellie. Ellie was a sweet four-year-old girl that lost her life to blood cancer just last year. If we can make her life any better, it's all worth it,” said Eassty.
When i asked why they climbed for Ellie?
“Ellie was a friend of one of our climbers and she was a sweet four-year-old girl,” Eassty said.
Overall, $28 million has been raised since the climb was introduced in 1991.
To learn more about the climb and how you can make a difference, visit the Firefighters Stairclimb website.
