Thirty-two cadets graduated from Hancock’s Fire Academy on May 16. *** El 16 de mayo, 32 cadetes se graduaron de la academia de bomberos de Hancock (Fire Academy) en Lompoc.Courtesy photos.
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LOMPOC — Allan Hancock College celebrated a new crop of first responders on May 16 as a combined 68 cadets graduated from the college’s fire and emergency medical services (EMS) academies.
The graduates were honored during two ceremonies at the college’s Public Safety Training Complex (PSTC) in Lompoc.
“This graduating class embodies the future of public safety,” said Hancock Superintendent/President Kevin G. Walthers, Ph.D. “They’ve undergone rigorous training and are ready to step into their roles as first responders, serving and protecting our communities.”
A total of 32 cadets graduated from the fire academy, marking the end of a rigorous 18-week?program?consisting of 624 hours of classroom and field instruction. The ceremony was also an acknowledgment that the cadets had not only completed that training but met and exceeded the state and national certification training standards for?Firefighter I Certification.
“We came together as a team and face an assortment of challenges that helped us grow,” said gradate and academy class president Patrick Shahrabani. “It was a testament to our dedication and resilience.”
Before the ceremony, the cadets gave a live demonstration of the skills they learned at the?academy, including?running?fire?hoses, dousing burning cars and extricating “victims” from vehicle wrecks outside the PSTC’s burn tower.
A total of 36 cadets graduated from the college’s EMS program. During their time at the academy, the cadets learned critical skills such as patient handling and moving, emergency vehicle driving, and more. Much of the training was hands-on and utilized the state-of-the-art equipment and technology available at the PSTC. In addition to traditional classroom learning environments, the cadets also trained in one of the only community college?EMS?simulation labs in the state.
Hancock’s high-tech lab includes simulation mannequins and an ambulance simulator that allows students to experience and practice the treatment of a patient while in a moving vehicle.
“Today you are stepping into a second family. The family of first responders,” EMS Academy Instructor Suze Roehl told the graduating recruits.
To learn more about Hancock’s public safety programs, visit https://www.hancockcollege.edu/pstc
Hancock’s EMS Academy celebrated 36 cadets who graduated from the program on May 16 in Lompoc. *** El 16 de mayo, 36 cadetes se graduaron de la academia de servicios
médicos de emergencia de Hancock (Fire Academy) en Lompoc.