Fire Department to Graduate 16 Cadets Friday

The Las Cruces Fire Department will graduate 16 cadets from its 38^th Fire Academy on Friday.

The commencement ceremony begins at 5 p.m. Friday, June 27, at the Rio Grande Theatre, 211 N. Main St. in Downtown Las Cruces.

Fire cadets expected to graduate on Friday include Jacob Arellano, Jacob Baldwin, Rebekah Butler, Patrick Cardon, Alejandro Carrillo, Jacob Casillas, Henry Gardner, Samuel Grant, Brian Korn, Jazmin Martinez, Trent Mims, Juan Ortiz Villa, Charles Ray, Leah Schnell, Shane Sowers and Melvin Villegas.

The Fire Academy provides 640 hours of field training and classroom instruction over a span of 16 weeks. During the academy, cadets received training in firefighting techniques, hazardous materials, vehicle extrication, technical rescue and fire inspection.

Beginning June 29, the graduates who already have their EMT-Basic License will be assigned to one of eight fire stations for emergency response. The remaining cadets will complete another eight weeks of EMT-Basic training before they are licensed.