CERT
Following a major disaster, first responders who provide fire and medical services may not be able to meet the demand for emergency services for the first 72 hours of the disaster. Serious problems such as communication failures, road blockages and significant numbers of injured victims may prevent people from accessing those emergency services they have come to expect at a moment's notice. People may have to rely on each other for help in order to meet their immediate life saving and life sustaining needs.
It has been proven many times that
under disaster conditions, family members, fellow employees, and neighbors will
spontaneously try to help each other. This was the case following theMexico
City earthquake where untrained, spontaneous volunteers saved 800 people. Sadly to say, over 100 untrained volunteers lost their lives while attempting to save others. This is a high price to pay and is preventable through training.
The CERT program provides an effective first-responder capability with the aid of citizen involvement. Acting as individuals during a disaster, trained CERT volunteers can fan out within a particular neighborhood or business complex extinguishing small fires, performing light search and rescue and rendering basic first aid for disaster victims.
Individual civilian volunteers will be recruited and trained as neighborhood, business, and government teams that, in essence, will be auxiliary first responders. These groups can provide immediate assistance to victims in their area, organize spontaneous volunteers who have not had the training, and collect disaster intelligence that will assist professional responders with prioritization and allocation of resources following a disaster.
CERT is about readiness, people helping people, rescuer safety, and doing the greatest good for the greatest number. Through training, citizens can manage utilities, put out small fires, provide basic medical aid and save the lives of neighbors or coworkers.
CERT is a positive and realistic approach to emergency and disaster situations where citizens can make a difference.
The
next round of training will begin on Wednesday, September 17th from
6PM until 10PM. The Training dates will be as follows:
- September 17, 2008 6PM -
10PM
- September 24, 2008 6PM -
10PM
- October 01, 2008 6PM -
10PM
- October 15, 2008 6PM -
10PM
- October 22, 2008 6PM -
10PM
For further details or registration, contact Monarch Fire Protection District Inspector Roger Morris at 314-514-0900 extension 311 or morris.r@monarchfpd.org Registration forms are available on the District website under "Forms on Line."
CERT WEB SITE LINKS
State of Missouri
Community Emergency Response Team (CERT)
http://sema.dps.mo.gov/CC%20Webs/CCcert.asp
Citizens Corp
http://sema.dps.mo.gov/CC%20Webs/CCindex.asp
United States of America / Federal
Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) http://training.fema.gov/emiweb/CERT
Citizens Corp http://www.citizencorps.gov
