Firefighters Will Take On the Ultimate Stair Climb This Weekend

More than 1,500 first-responders from around the world will participate in Sunday's Scott Firefighter Stairclimb at Columbia Center in downtown Seattle.

The event is a fundraiser for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. Firefighters from 27 U.S. states, Canada and New Zealand will participate in Sunday's event, according to a news release from event organizers. The climb includes 69 flights of stairs and 1,311 steps.

Firefighters aren't the only ones who can assist the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society by participating in a stair climb. Members of the general public can take part in a separate Big Climb at the Columbia Tower on March 20. Both the Scott Firefighter Stairclimb and the Big Climb are currrently sold out, however.

While Snohomish County Fire District One typically sends firefighters to the event, this year no one is participating. Leslie Hynes, public information officer for Fire District One, said a registration glitch prevented officers from signing up on time.

"I'm sure we'll be back at it next year," Hynes said.

Last year's top finisher was Kory Burgess of Missoula, Mont., who completed the climb in 11 minutes, 1.35 seconds.

A number of Puget Sound area fire departments are participating in the event. One of those is Redmond, which Patch editor Caitlin Moran covered in an article

For more on the sport of stair climbing, check out on local competitive athlete PJ Glassey.