Southern Africa's toughest female firefighter: Baigum Abrahams shares her drive

While winning the title is a compliment, Southern Africa's Toughest Female Firefighter, Baigum Abrahams, says she's more focused on improving her ability to do her job.

Abrahams won the title for a third year in a row this past weekend, but this year she shares the honour with her colleague, Thobeka Senatse.

She shared that her motivation to become a firefighter was sparked after she nearly set her own home alight.

"So I nearly burnt my house down a few years ago, and when the firefighters responded, you know, there was a massive sense of relief," she said. "I just wanted to give back that feeling and help people when they're having their worst day of their life. I just wanted to be there to help make their worst day just a little bit better."