Ever wonder what it’s like to be a firefighter? Fifteen Peoria residents found out, the hard way. The Peoria Fire-Medical Department holds an annual Citizens Academy during October. This year’s class started on Oct. 7, and met for five different nights, with “graduation” on Oct. 28. This was an “Introduction to Emergency Response” event, designed to give residents a good taste of what the firefighter-paramedics do. Each night featured different activities, said Michael Selmer. As the public information officer for Peoria Fire-Medical, Selmer facilitated the academy. The first night, the class met Peoria Vice Mayor Bridget Binsbacher, Fire Chief Bobby Ruiz, Deputy Chief Stacy Irvine, Deputy Chief Gary Bernard and Battalion Chief Tony Neely.