What is a CERT?
What substantiates the need for CERT?
What part do the team members play?
Where do we find team members?
How will members of the team be trained?
Is it practical to train people just for disasters?
Do they really work as a team?
How are teams formed?
Is anybody else doing this?

What is a CERT?
	A "CERT" is a group of people that is organized and receives special training for the purpose of enhancing their ability to recognize, respond to, and recover from a major emergency or disaster situation.
	CERT is organized under the leadership of the fire protection or law enforcement authority having jurisdiction on the area where the CERT will operate.
	CERT members are trained by Fire Department and/or Police Department certified officers in areas that will help the citizens take care of themselves and others should the need arise, during a major emergency or disaster.
	As an organized team, CERT provide a valuable support function to the professional emergency responder whose arrival might be delayed due to the nature and/or scope of the event.
	When a major emergency overwhelms normally available resources, response delays of hours or even days may occur; someone with "basic skills training" should be able to immediately assist those in distress.

Various reports of "Lessons Learned" from different disasters including the more recent weather emergencies; Hugo in 1989, Andrew in 1992, and the "Unnamed Storms of 1993." One study of particular impact was released in June, 1990 by the Urban Institute of University of North Carolina at Charlotte on the lessons learned from Hurricane Hugo. Hugo struck Charlotte after traveling 200 miles inland while maintaining hurricane force winds that did damage estimated to be in the hundreds of millions of dollars.

Excerpts of the Study are quoted:

"Emergency plans must find ways to incorporate citizens, a tremendous resource...find ways to increase citizen participation."

"More training in emergency response is needed, not only for public employees, but for all segments of the community."

"Identify ways to create neighborhood contracts or teams to help in an emergency...."

"Identify priority agencies and businesses to be assisted in regaining operation...Grocery stores and bands may need greater attention and assistance from government than previously recognized."

"Special attention needs to be directed to poorer neighborhoods...poor citizens have fewer personal financial resources to help recover from an emergency..."

"Find ways to incorporate and to legitimize citizen involvement in emergency response..."

"Conduct more training for emergencies, especially for personnel working in group facilities such as schools, jails and senior centers."

""Explore ways to get information to employees about the safety of their families in an emergency. One of the key factors related to keeping any employee on the job... is knowledge about the safety of the family."

"Establish a business emergency response committee to plan coordinated assistance from business to the community."

"Devise ways to get services out to needy citizens in a more timely manner." "Contact neighborhood associations prior to an emergency to identify neighborhood volunteers."

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Properly trained, they would:

Be Better Prepared to deal with events that might otherwise seem overwhelming. Recognize The Potential Hazards associated with a particular type of event and take appropriate action.

Take Steps To Get To Safety and/or help others to do so in a more organized fashion. Assume A Leadership Role with those who are not trained to deal with the event.

Administer First Aid and/or Triage techniques.

Identify, Organize, and Utilize Available Resources.

Perform Needs Assessment, document and communicate to local authorities. Assist Others With The Emotional Distress, associated with major emergencies and disaster conditions. Allow Better Allocation Of Emergency Resources by being more capable of "sizing-up" a situation and properly advising emergency responders.

1. Neighborhoods/Homeowners' Associations
2. Graduates of the Citizens Fire and Police Academies
3. City and County Employees
4. High Rise Apartments and Office Buildings
5. The Hotel/Motel Industry
6. Businesses/Civic Groups
7. Schools/Churches/Hospitals/Retirement Communities and Homes for the Elderly
8. Anywhere People Live, Work or Interact

The members of the CERT will be trained in:

1. Disaster Preparedness and hazard vulnerability analysis
2. Basic fire suppression
3. Medical Treatment strategies for life-threatening conditions
4. Principles of triage, patient assessment and stabilization
5. Search and rescue priorities, resources, techniques, and limitations
6. CERT strategies, tactics, and documentation
7. Post-Disaster emotional environment
8. Incident Command/Management and team organization

CPR/First Aid courses are recommended. Private Study will be encouraged using the Home Study Courses provided by the State of Florida Division of Emergency Management and the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Extended study could be made available to those graduates that are interested in getting better trained in a specific area. These areas of study would be taught by either the Fire Department or other City Departments and Agencies.

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DISASTER is typically considered an event that causes injury, loss of life, and widespread damage. It almost always causes local resources to be overwhelmed by the magnitude of the crisis.

In our daily lives, citizens unable to help others make up one of the principal elements that will overwhelm the emergency responders and their resources and will ultimately enhance the intensity of the disaster at a personal and professional level

	Not knowing what to do if a home is damaged.
	Inability to implement and perform basic shock treatment techniques.
	Inability to effectively prepare before a disaster and inability to recognize and identify basic danger signs in an area or in a situation after a major disaster.

Citizens trained in the manner proposed should be able to Deal More Effectively With Daily Emergencies so they won't create that personal disaster or the professional disaster that could otherwise be the situation; and they can advise responders of the pre-emptive steps that have been taken.

The "Team", in its most general sense, would refer to the group of citizens that seek training and share a common interest in becoming more aware of the problems and solutions that may affect them, their families, and their neighborhood.

Students attend the class in "teams" in order to experience the camaraderie that is associated with a group of people that organize to accomplish goals together.

The graduate of this course is encouraged to go back to their neighborhood and garner the interest necessary to form "neighborhood teams" that can prepare for and respond to each other's needs in the event of an impending or actual emergency situation.

Neighborhood Watch is a Team based concept that has neighbors watching out for neighbors. The CERT Program adds a new dimension to this concept and gives participants the skills and learning bank that allows them to deal with many of the problems that can affect a community. "Teams" are people working toward a common goal or cause.

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The graduate of the CERT Program is made aware of the problems that they could face during a major emergency. They share this information with friends in their neighborhood.

As these friends learn of the availability of information that could enhance their family's safety, interest in certain areas of personal preference or potential expertise emerge.

People will seek new knowledge in areas that they find of interest or that they are capable of performing. Some people are good at "hands-on" tasks; others feel comfortable with leadership, support or documentation duties.

The American Public enjoys a challenge, especially a challenge that makes them feel philanthropic, or gives them a feeling of the "right to belong" to the community where they live. As the interest in this "new challenge" grows, so do the number of people that want to belong to this "New Team" that is emerging in their neighborhood. Leaders are appointed, tasks are assigned, and training is scheduled so that everybody feels better about their ability to be prepared; and be a part of the "TEAM".

The City of Los Angeles implemented this program to help their citizens deal more effectively with disaster after the Whittier Narrows Earthquake of 1987. As of 1993, they had trained 8,000 people and had 225 active teams. Phoenix developed an Urban Survival Course taught in the schools from kindergarten to eighth grade. It moves past fire safety to teach children life safety behavior as well. The City of Orlando Fire Department and the City of Port Orange in Florida are running similar programs. Since it's inception in Broward County in 1996, the following Cities have had personnel certified as instructors:

1. City of Ft. Lauderdale
2. City of Coral Springs
3. Port Everglades
4. City of Sunrise
5. Town of Davie
6. City of Hollywood
7. City of Pompano Beach
8. City of Pembroke Pines
9. City of Lighthouse Point
10. City of Miramar
11. City of Tamarac
12. Hallandale Beach
13. City of Deerfield Beach

For more information on a CERT program nearest to you contact Lottie Brown via email at labrown@broward.orgor call Broward Emergency Management Agency at (954)-831-3900

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