Nearly 100 Philly firefighter cadets graduated from the Fire Academy on Monday. Class 198 contains 92 members, 88 from the Philadelphia Fire Department and four from the Upper Darby Fire Department.
The cadets are also certified as emergency medical technicians. The Academy’s rigorous nine-month program includes fire suppression training, hazardous materials awareness, and fire- and life-safety education.
The Philadelphia Fire Department is one of the busiest fire/EMS systems in the nation, handling about 800 to 1,000 EMS and fire incidents every day. Last year, the department responded to over 362,000 calls to 911; 265,000 EMS incidents; and 47,000 fire incidents.
The ceremony was closed to the public due to COVID-19 restrictions.