Editor’s Note: In preparation for Citizen Emergency Rescue Training (CERT) classes being offered by the Grundy County Local Emergency Planning Committee next month, the Republican-Times is publishing a series of articles about CERT and local emergency planning activities, written by the CERT program coordinator, Matt Walker. Classes are scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 13 and Feb. 20, with those taking the classes eligible to be part of the county’s CERT team. The team will provide assistance to emergency service responders during major disasters.
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The Community Emergency Response Team
In previous articles we’ve discussed how to be prepared to take care of yourself in an emergency. Now, we’ll discuss what you can do if disaster should befall your community and you find yourself in good shape, while many of your neighbors have not been so lucky.
What do you do? Having lived here pretty much all my life, I know what people in our community will do in that situation: they’ll try to help, even without any knowledge of how best to do so or any tools to help them with the task.
The Community Emergency Response Team program is meant to help the average person respond effectively and efficiently without placing themselves in unnecessary danger. In the CERT training, citizens learn to collect disaster intelligence to support first responder efforts, manage utilities and put out small fires, treat the three medical killers by opening airways, control bleeding and treat for shock, provide basic medical aid and search for and rescue victims safely.
Local government prepares for everyday emergencies but during a disaster, the number and scope of incidents can outstrip conventional emergency services’ ability to respond. When disaster strikes, the survivors are the first people on the scene. With the CERT training, they can begin to render aid. When professionals arrive, they provide welcome sets of extra hands, ears and eyes to overwhelmed responders.
In addition to being able to respond when their own community is struck, those who have taken the CERT training and become members of the official Grundy County CERT will receive additional training in emergency response and will work in various capacities during events in the area such as manning first aid booths at local fairs or helping to direct traffic during parades and festivals. Grundy County CERT may take on more advanced training in search and rescue if there is sufficient interest. Lastly, the county CERT may be called on to provide mutual aid to nearby communities in times of disaster.
Persons interested in becoming CERT trained can take certification classes being held in Trenton on Feb. 13 and Feb. 20. For more information about the classes, persons can go to the CERT Facebook Page or the Grundy County Emergency Management website and webpage.
