Imagine your city experiences a hurricane, tornado, earthquake, or disaster.
Who's going to help you?
Probably not the fire and police, because they are going to be overwhelmed or unavailable.
People nearby will be the first to respond.
So let's hope they're trained.
City Emergency Response Training, commonly called CERT, teaches disaster survival and
rescue skills to do just that.
Every person interested in learning emergency response skills can take this training.
It is taught for the benefit of the whole community.
CERT training is fun, interesting, and engaging.
It's hands-on, interactive, and supported with written materials you take home to study.
Each class is designed for visual, auditory, verbal, and tactile learners.
It is truly universal in its approach, accessible to everyone.
Graduates become part of the emergency management team, called upon to support communities and
their response operation partners.
Training begins with disaster preparedness at home, work, or away.
Small fire suppression is a hands-on activity in the course.
Search and rescue operations uses marking systems to identify building safety and survivors.
CRIBIN, the art of lifting heavy objects in slow increments safely.
Search and rescue.
Identifying medical condition of survivors leads to triage, the prioritizing treatment
for the most injured.
Disaster medical operations teaches how to administer first aid to stabilize injuries.
The foundation of CERT is prepared individual, committed to teamwork, passionate about service
to the community, flexible integrating with response and recovery partners.
Imagine your city experiences a disaster.
Imagine people are trapped and injured.
Imagine the time to respond is now.
Who's going to help?
You.
We can take comfort in the words of the late Mr. Fred Rogers.
When I was a boy, I would see scary things in the news.
My mother would say to me, look for the helpers.
You will always find people who are helping.
To this day, especially in times of disaster, I remember my mother's words, and I am always
comforted by realizing that there are still so many helpers, so many caring people in
this world, Mr. Fred Rogers.
