The Las Cruces Fire Department and the Veterans Advisory Board will commemorate National Fallen Firefighters Memorial Weekend with a flag-raising and traditional Bell Ceremony Monday morning at Veterans Memorial Park.
The ceremony begins at 8 a.m. Monday, Oct. 7, 2019 at Veterans Memorial Park, 2651 Roadrunner Parkway. The ceremony is free to the public and will honor all firefighters from throughout the U.S. who made the ultimate sacrifice during the past year.
The Las Cruces Fire Department proudly serves New Mexico's second-largest city with professional firefighters who are all licensed emergency medical technicians. LCFD responds to more than 17,000 calls for service annually with eight engine companies, two truck companies, a battalion chief and several support vehicles. In addition to fire suppression and emergency medical services, LCFD also offers special response teams that provide technical rescue, hazardous materials response and aircraft rescue firefighting.
Las Cruces has obtained a Class 1 rating from the Insurance Services Office making it the first in New Mexico. The City is one of only 97 U.S. communities to achieve the top ranking. The rating is based on a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 being the best rating. The rating typically results in lower insurance premiums for residential and commercial policy holders.
In 2001, President George W. Bush approved legislation requiring the U.S. flag to be lowered to half-staff at all federal buildings and public facilities to memorialize fallen firefighters. This ceremony is also the start of Fire Prevention Week, which is from October 6 through October 12.