DeKalb community members will have the opportunity to experience firefighting through the DeKalb Fire Department.

The fourth annual Citizens Fire Academy will introduce up to 15 people to the service and training involved in becoming a firefighter.

DeKalb firefighters will hold free classes on automobile extrication, rescue techniques, emergency medical treatment, fire suppression and equipment use.

Most of the course will be spent gaining hands-on experience.

“If people want to come in and see what the fire department and DeKalb are about, this is a good way to do it,” said Lt. Eric Hicks of the DeKalb Fire Department.

Applications for the academy will be taken until the maximum of 15 people have signed up. Classes will meet at Fire Station No. 1, 700 Pine St. The first session will be at 7 p.m. Thursday.

Classes will be held once a week on a day to be determined after the first meeting. The course will run seven consecutive weeks for three hours a night.

Applicants must be at least 18 years old and a DeKalb resident, or employed within the city. Hicks said NIU students are welcome to apply, and have participated in past academies.

The class is not designed as a recruiting tool, but there have been graduates who have gone on to become firefighters, Hicks said.

The class will end with a graduation ceremony on Dec. 11.

For information or an application, call the DeKalb Fire Department at 748-8460.