For the first time, CERT (Community Emergency Response Training) will be offered in the City, sponsored by the PSCAC and Emergency Preparedness Committee, with training by Montgomery County Fire Rescue. The 20-hour course will run from Jan. 31 - Feb. 11.
In a major disaster or emergency, local communities may be on their own for the first several days, as was seen last year. CERT training will help create a group of residents who will be able to assist neighbors in a large-scale emergency. The training will help participants become front-line assistants in a disaster and to be community safety advocates.
CERT Teams learn home and workplace preparedness, contingency planning, organization and prioritization response skills, triage and basic wound treatment, fire suppression and hazardous materials, and size-up and safety skills for search and rescue.
The program promotes a partnering initiative between the professional emergency response services and communities they serve. It is community-based first-response approach using a model created by the Los Angeles Fire Department, now used in hundreds of communities and promoted by FEMA.
The course will meet several evenings at Heffner Community Center, one Saturday in the Municipal Building, and one Saturday at the Public Safety Training Academy in Rockville. It concludes with a supervised disaster simulation using a team approach.
For details and to apply, see http://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/firerescue/sion/champ/
Posted by Police at January 9, 2006 10:42 AM