Preparing for Emergency Response

Using the basic CERT curriculum, CERT personnel train to prepare for a disaster or emergency by:

• Identifying and mitigating potential hazards in the home and workplace.
• Initiating plans to prepare themselves and their loved ones for the hazards that they face.
• Learning skills to help themselves, loved ones, and neighbors or fellow employees until professional response resources arrive.
• Working cooperatively as a team within their neighborhoods or workplaces.
• Maintaining a relationship with the agency that sponsors the CERT program.
• Participating in continuing education and training.
• Volunteering for projects to enhance the public safety of their communities.
• Understanding their capabilities and limitations when deployed.

During training, CERTs learn to:

• Prepare for the hazards that threaten their communities.
• Apply size-up and safety principles.
• Locate and turn off utilities.
• Extinguish small fires.
• Identify hazardous materials situations.
• Triage and treat victims.
• Set up a medical treatment area.
• Conduct search and rescue in lightly and moderately damaged structures.
• Understand the psychological impact of a disaster on themselves and others.
• Organize CERT members and spontaneous volunteers for an effective and safe response.
• Apply response skills in a disaster simulation.

Following initial training, the sponsoring agency has the challenge of helping CERT members maintain and improve their skills through a variety of training programs, exercises, and special projects, all tailored at the local level to meet local needs. CERT members must keep their safety in mind as their first priority. CERT volunteers must know their capabilities and the limitations of their training and equipment and work within those limitations.

CERTs do NOT:

• Suppress large fires.
• Enter structures that they consider heavily damaged and dangerous (i.e. leaning or moved from foundation).
• Perform hazardous materials cleanup or respond to incidents involving radiological, chemical, or biological agents.
• Perform medical, fire, or search and rescue operations beyond their level of training.
• Activate or deploy unless called for in their procedures.

CERTs are considered “Good Samaritans” and are covered under the Volunteer Protection Act of 1997. CERT volunteers do not have any authority beyond serving as “Good Samaritan” when helping others.

When deployed appropriately, CERTs can complement and enhance first-response capability in neighborhoods and workplaces by ensuring the safety of themselves and their families working outward to the neighborhood or office and beyond until the first responders arrive. CERTs can then assist first-response personnel as directed.