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What Is Lucas County CERT and Why Is There a Need?
Each year communities across Ohio fall victim to some disaster. Emergency events may be in the form of severe storms, tornados, blizzards, floods or "man made" disasters. The damage caused by disasters effects all elements of society and government.
Catastrophic events severely restrict and often overwhelm emergency response resources, communications, transportation and utilities. In addition, they leave many individuals and neighborhoods cut off from outside support. When we hear about this or see it on the news, it always seems to be happening to someone else but;
What If This Happened to You?
Community Emergency Response Teams (CERT) are trained to help communities mitigate disasters during the first minutes and up to 72 hours following a disaster when damaged roads, disrupted communications, high call volume, etc., may restrict access by local police, fire and emergency medical services. The purpose of CERT training is to provide citizens with the basic skills that they will need to handle their own needs and then to respond to their communities’ needs in the aftermath of a disaster.
 What Does the Course Involve?
A typical CERT course consists of 20 hours of training, usually conducted over one weekend. Classes are taught by trained emergency personnel, including firefighters, law enforcement officers, paramedics and Emergency Management professionals.
The course agenda is as follows:
Session 1 DISASTER PREPAREDNESS Introduction to disasters, impact of disasters on infrastructures, hazards posed by buildings and nonstructural items, the role of CERTs in disaster response.
Session 2 DISASTER FIRE SUPPRESSION Identifying and reducing potential fire hazards, basic fire suppression strategy, firefighting resources, firefighting techniques.
Session 3 DISASTER MEDICAL OPERATIONS - PART 1 Treatment strategies for life threatening conditions and principles of triage.
Session 4 DISASTER MEDICAL OPERATIONS - PART 2 Head to toe assessments, treatment for head wounds, treatment for fractures, sprains, burns and other injuries.
Session 5 LIGHT SEARCH AND RESCUE OPERATIONS Search and rescue priorities and resources, techniques for size up and search, lifting, cribbing and removing victims, rescuer safety.
Session 6 DISASTER PSYCHOLOGY AND TEAM ORGANIZATION The post-disaster emotional environment, the Incident Command System, CERT Strategies, tactics, and documentation.
Session 7 COURSE REVIEW AND DISASTER SIMULATION EXERCISE
Additional and refresher training will be provided and is a condition of continued (CERT) Team membership.
The Objectives of the Course
Upon completion of this course, the participants will be able to:
- Describe the types of hazards that are most likely to affect their homes and community.
- Describe the function of CERT and their role in immediate response.
- Take steps to prepare themselves for a disaster.
- Identify and reduce potential fire hazards in their home or workplace.
- While working as a team, apply basic fire suppression strategies, resources, and safety measures to extinguish a burning liquid.
- Apply techniques for opening airways, controlling bleeding and treating for shock.
- Conduct triage under simulated disaster conditions.
- Perform head to toe assessments.
- Select and set up a treatment area.
- Employ basic treatments for various wounds, and apply splints to suspected fractures and sprains.
- Identify planning and size up requirements for potential search and rescue situations.
- Describe the most common techniques for searching a structure.
- Use safe techniques for debris removal and victim extrication.
- Describe ways to protect rescuers during search and rescue.
 The target audiences for CERT training are private citizens, businesses, and schools that desire the skills and knowledge required to prepare for and respond to a disaster.
How Can I Get Involved?
Some "natural" groups that can benefit from the CERT program are:
Community Groups- Homeowners associations, neighborhood watch groups, faith-based groups and similar organizations, geographically distributed within a local area.
Business and Industry- Possible locations include office buildings, large hotels. and industrial complexes.
Schools- Universities and Colleges, School District Administrators, PTA organizations and faculty groups.
Local Government- Employees who are trained in CERT procedures can help their co-workers and then quickly respond to provide needed services to citizens during and after an emergency.
Who May Serve as a Member of a CERT (Team)?
Any individual, who desires to voluntarily serve the community in response to emergencies and disasters or as a member of a group or organization functioning in the public interest, may serve in a (CERT) Team as long as they do so under the auspices of their County Emergency Management Agency or other registered Citizen Corps Council, and agree to follow the program guidelines provided by the Federal Emergency Management Agency and Division of Emergency Services and Homeland Security. Team membership, in Lucas County, is contingent upon satisfactory completion of all training sessions and a basic background check.
 Private sector business and organizations may sponsor the CERT program for their employees, and may arrange for such training through their local emergency program manager or arrange for it directly with certified instructors who have completed the CERT program.
How Do I Become Trained In CERT?
The Lucas County Emergency Management Agency, in partnership with Owen’s Community College, provides CERT training throughout the year in classes at Owen’s Workplace and Community Services Campus on Tracy Road in Rossford, Ohio. To register for one of these classes simply call Owen’s Community College at (567) 661-7357 or contact the Lucas County EMA office at (419) 213-6503.
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