Local Firefighters To Climb Second Tallest Building In The West

Firefighter Matt Lathrop gets a lot of attention at the gym when he’s on the treadmill dressed in full gear.

“They ask: ‘What are you doing?'” he said.

Lathrop and five of his fellow firefighters from the Indian Wells station are training for a big climb. On March 6, they will climb Seattle’s Columbia Tower which is the second highest building west of the Mississippi River.

It stands 69 stories tall and stretches 788 vertical feet. It contains 1,311steps.

The crew will be climbing in full gear, which adds another 75 pounds to their weight.

They began training in November. “We’ve done a lot of things like climb stadium bleachers at Palm Desert High School,” Lathrop said. “At Agua Caliente [Resort and Spa] hotel, we climbed the interior stairwell there.”

This is their first time doing the climb formally known as the “Scott Firefighter Stair Climb.”

1,500 firefighters from across the country are participating. Every six seconds a firefighter starts the climb.

The all-time record for completing the feat: 11 minutes. The average firefighter finishes in 45 minutes.

But, the Indian Wells firefighters want to complete it in less than 20 minutes.

The team also is climbing to raise money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society because many of them and their families have dealt with those specific illnesses. Lathrop’s grandmother, for example, died from lymphoma.

Their fundraising goal: $15,555.

So far, they’ve raised $6,600.

When local businesses heard about the fire crew’s efforts, they wanted to help. Stylists at the Hyatt Grand Champions provided haircuts for donations Thursday.

If you would like to contribute to their efforts, please go to http://indianwellsfire.com