CERT Drill at Parkyway Plaza El Cajon

Are you prepared for a disaster?  Earthquake or firestorm? Consider attending a Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) academy.

The  CERT Program educates people about disaster preparedness and the hazards that may impact the area they live. These FREE CERT lessons will train you in basic disaster response skills, such as fire safety, light search and rescue, team organization, and disaster medical operations. Using the training taught in the classroom and during drill exercises, CERT members will be better prepared to also assist others in their neighborhood or workplace following a disaster or other unexpected event when professional responders are not immediately available.

Check with the San Diego Office of Emergency Services for more CERT programs around the county.

Read on for more information on what to bring to these “free” disaster preparedness training classes once you are registered.

• For the first class please bring your own 1-1/2″ binder to the class for your CERT manual.  Bring a pencil and pen for note taking.
• Dress casually – certain classes may get you a little dirty – we’ll let you know which. Please, always wear sturdy shoes or wear tennis shoes – NO opened toed shoes, flip-flops or sandals please.
• Please bring a pair for good work gloves to the 4th class
• Please bring your own snacks/food & beverages. (like coffee, juice or water)
• Our classes are taught by members of Heartland Fire & Rescue – serving El Cajon, la Mesa and Lemon Grove, and Santee Fire Departments.
• Please Note – our classes have been in big demand and are open to those serious about being prepared for a disaster, so if you register – please show up. If you have registered for a class and find you cannot make it please call so someone else can take your place – thank you.

*When academies are full, please check with our local American Red Cross, they also offer “free” disaster preparedness classes.

Learn how to better protect yourself and your family.  These classes are free - but what you’ll learn is priceless!

• There are several other CERT programs available in the county! Click here – CERT Council for a complete list of other CERT programs.
• Lakeside Fire is also offering CERT Classes – click on the following link:  http://www.lakesidefire.net/lks_cert.php

*A Teen CERT program is also offered:

If you are interested in this training, the City of Julian will be providing this class as an ongoing program. This is an excellent opportunity to provide your community with trainers for the CERT/TEEN CERT program. We are excited to assist in any way we can. Contact Johhny and Diane Hake, CERT/TEEN CERT Julian/Cuyamaca at (760) 310-0976 or at (760) 310-0206. The American Red Cross also offers free training.

Prepare Now – San Diego County Has Combinef Emergency Websites

The San Diego County Office of Emergency Services has combined their three former individual websites (Ready San Diego, San Diego Emergency and San Diego Recovery) into one website.  The new website is: www.sdcountyemergency.com.  This website contains great information on preparedness, information during an emergency and information on recovery. During an emergency, the public will be directed to this website for information.  Sign
up for “Reverse 9-1-1.” Keep this website handy when a disaster occurs.

In addition:

• If you would like disaster preparedness information now – please visit 72hours.org or www.alertsandiego.org
• Most recent earthquake activity? Click here: http://pasadena.wr.usgs.gov/recenteqs/Quakes/quakes0.htm
• Additional Disaster Information: From Fed Health – FED HEALTH
  Disaster Supplies: American Red Cross – American Red Cross – San Diego
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  •CERT Team Members for a great Earthquake Drill held at New Frontier Mobile Home Community – See the article in the Union Tribune: East County CERT Holds Earthquake Drill June 19th, 2004
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  CERT is an excellent opportunity to learn many important life saving skills to better protect yourself, your family and your neighbors in the event of most disasters. This translates into saved lives and less panic.   CERT members also are encouraged to support emergency Take a look at the Los Angeles CERT Program:
  www.cert-la.com

Other CERT Programs:

• CERT San Diego Program Manager
  (619) 533-3075
  (program) CERT@sandiego.gov
  Fax:(619) 544-9351

Frequently Asked Questions About CERT

Q: How do CERT members maintain their skills?
A: CERT members and the sponsor work together to maintain team skills. It is suggested that the sponsor conduct refresher classes and an annual exercise where all CERT members are invited to participate. Some response agencies have conducted joint exercises with CERT team and operate as they would during an actual disaster. The last point does bring up a lesson learned. Besides training CERT members, it is also important to train members of response agencies about CERTs, the skills that teams have and the role that they will have during a major disaster. One way to develop this trust is by encouraging agency personnel to participate in classes as instructors and coaches and activities involving CERTs.

Understanding that CERTs may operate independently following a disaster. CERTs can practice this independence by taking some responsibility for their training. Teams can design activities and exercises for themselves and with other teams. Some members can be rescuers, some victims, and some evaluators. After the event, there can be a social so that teams get to know each other

Q: What if I want to do more than just the basic training?
A: CERT members may attend classes provided by the community agencies on animal care, special needs concerns, debris removal, utilities control, advanced first aid, Automatic External Defibrillator use, CPR skills, and others.

CERT members are a potential volunteer pool for the community. They can help with special projects like distributing preparedness material, staffing medical booths during special events, and assisting with installation of smoke alarms for seniors or special needs households. Some CERT members have sought additional training opportunities in shelter management, community relations, and donations management.

HOW DID CERT START?

1985: The idea to train volunteers from the community to assist emergency service personnel during large natural disasters began. In February of 1985, a group of Los Angeles City officials went to Japan to study its extensive earthquake preparedness plans. The group encountered an extremely homogenous society that had taken extensive steps to train entire neighborhoods in one aspect of alleviating the potential devastation that would follow a major earthquake. These single-function neighborhood teams were trained in either fire suppression, light search and rescue operations, first aid, or evacuation.

In September of 1985, a Los Angeles City investigation team was sent to Mexico City following an earthquake there that registered a magnitude 8.1 on the Richter scale and killed more than 10,000 people and injured more than 30,000. Mexico City had no training program for citizens prior to the disaster. However, large groups of volunteers organized themselves and performed light search and rescue operations. Volunteers are credited with more than 800 successful rescues; unfortunately, more than 100 of these untrained volunteers died during the 15-day rescue operation.

The lessons learned in Mexico City strongly indicated that a plan to train volunteers to help themselves and others, and become an adjunct to government response, was needed as an essential part of overall preparedness, survival, and recovery.

1986: The City of Los Angeles Fire Department developed a pilot program to train a group of leaders in a neighborhood watch organization. A concept developed involving multi-functional volunteer response teams with the ability to perform basic fire suppression, light search and rescue, and first aid. This first team of 30 people completed training in early 1986 and proved that the concept was viable through various drills, demonstrations, and exercises. Expansion of the program, however, was not feasible due to limited City resources, until an event occurred in 1987 that impacted the entire area.

1987: On October 1, 1987, the Whittier Narrows earthquake vividly underscored the threat of an area-wide major disaster, and demonstrated the need to expedite the training of civilians to prepare for earthquakes and other emergencies.

Following the Whittier Narrows earthquake, the City of Los Angeles took an aggressive role in protecting the citizens of Los Angeles by creating the Disaster Preparedness Division (now the Disaster Preparedness Unit) within the Los Angeles City Fire Department.

1993: The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) decided to make the concept and program available to communities nationwide. The Emergency Management Institute (EMI), in cooperation with the LAFD, expanded the CERT materials to make them applicable to all hazards.

2002: In January 2002, CERT became part of the Citizen Corps, a unifying structure to link a variety of related volunteer activities to expand a community’s resources for crime prevention and emergency response.

2004: As of January 2004, 50 states, three territories and six foreign countries are using the CERT training.

“It’s all about being prepared for a disaster!”

Following a disaster what should you do?  The following links will take you to a valuable guide helping you on the road to recovery following a major disaster.  But this information is a “must read” before a disaster occurs…so your recovery is smoother and faster.

http://www.theredguidetorecovery.com/

http://www.theredguidetorecovery.com/TRG_condensed_v8.3.pdf

http://preparesandiego.org/SafeSanDiego.aspx

Are You Ready?

An In-depth Guide to Citizen Preparedness

Take the quiz to see if you are truly prepared.

Are You Ready? An In-depth Guide to Citizen Preparedness is FEMA’s most comprehensive source on individual, family, and community preparedness. The guide has been revised, updated, and enhanced in August 2004 to provide the public with the most current and up-to-date disaster preparedness information available.

To download your copy of this important preparedness guide:

http://www.fema.gov/areyouready/

Learn How You Can Create Defensible Space Around Your Home

The following websites from the CALFIRE and the California Department Forestry explains defensible space:

Preparing for wildfire:

Guidelines:

http://www.fire.ca.gov/cdfbofdb/pdfs/4291finalguidelines2_23_06.pdf

also:

http://www.scfd9.org/DefensibleSpace1.pdf

Get a simple 3-step plan to proect your home and family from wildfire at www.ReadyForWildfire.org from CAL FIRE.  The time to prepare is now!

Right-click image to download PDF

Right-click image to download PDF

This system was a life saver for many of those evacuated during the October 2007 fires. Residents who live in San Diego County, which includes all 18 cities and the unincorporated areas of the County, are encouraged to register their cell phones and e-mail addresses for emergency notifications by visiting Ready San Diego:

Alert San Diego – “Get Signed Up. Get notified” -

www.sdcountyemergency.com

Once email addresses and cell phone numbers are registered, it will take up to 24 hours for that information to be updated into AlertSanDiego, the County of San Diego mass notification system that is commonly referred as Reverse 911.

AlertSanDiego will provide emergency alerts to your cell phone and e-mail address including evacuation notices. This is in addition to the land line calls received by those who have land line phones.

Residents are able to register multiple cell phone numbers and e-mail addresses by reopening the Web page. Residents without computers may access this Web site from one of the County libraries.

If a City resident has registered a cell phone number with the City of San Diego Reverse 9-1-1 system that information is automatically shared with the County cell phone registry. To register an e-mail address computer users must register with the County system.

Please note that while the County Mass Notification System is considered effective and efficient, you should not wait or rely exclusively on a call for evacuation directives. If you think you are in danger, you should evacuate immediately. If you are directed to evacuate by emergency personnel, you should follow their direction.

• Remember for disaster evacuation centers or help please call “2-1-1″, or on your cell phone call “858-300-1211″

By the way, from time to time they are looking for help in the answering of phones. Please call Megan, at (858) 300-1240 if you’d like to volunteer your time.

They also have a website www.211SanDiego.org

Additional helpful websites:

Click on the following for freeway & street closures in the fire areas:

California Highway Patrol freeway information

If you’d still like to help others through your monetary donations:

To donate to the American Red Cross as they help those who have been evacuated:

American Red Cross

You can donate to the Salvation Army:

Salvation Army Scroll to the donations link on their opening page.

Stay as safe as possible during an earthquake. Be aware that some earthquakes are actually foreshocks and a larger earthquake might occur. Minimize your movements to a few steps to a nearby safe place and if you are indoors, stay there until the shaking has stopped and you are sure exiting is safe.

Click on the following links for life saving information…

What to do during an earthquake:

http://www.fema.gov/hazard/earthquake/eq_during.shtm

What you can do to “prepare” for an earthquake:

http://www.fema.gov/hazard/earthquake/eq_before.shtm

Tracking earthquake activity:

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/recenteqsus/Quakes/quakes_big.php

Be safe!