What We Need From You:
- Your name
- Mailing address
- Daytime telephone number
- E-mail address
What Is The Process?
- Contact Sarasota County Emergency
Management at 941-861-5000.
- Names are placed on the class request list. As classes are
assembled, students are notified via email of the upcoming class
schedule.
- Students enroll by responding to the class announcement email.
Seats are provided on a first come, first-served basis following
the class announcement.
- Classes are held at the Sarasota County Technical Institute (SCTI)
Fire Science Academy located at 794 Circus Ave.
Key Points To Remember:
CERT Training is offered for a
nominal fee within the jurisdiction served by Sarasota County.
Students must complete all 20 hours of course work and
participate in the final “hands on” exercise to become CERT
certified.
To host a class, you need only provide an audience of 12
students.
We welcome you to consider neighborhood public schools, public
auditoriums, community buildings, houses of worship or any other
facility that will accommodate the anticipated participants in a
classroom setting
The Community Emergency Response
Team (CERT) concept was developed and implemented by the City of
Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD) in 1985. They recognized that
citizens would very likely be on their own during the early
stages of a catastrophic disaster. Accordingly, LAFD decided
that some basic training in disaster survival and rescue skills
would improve the ability of citizens to survive until first
responders or other assistance could arrive.
The training program that the
LAFD initiated proved to be so beneficial that the Federal
Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) felt that the concept and the
program should be made available to communities nationwide. In
1994, the Emergency Management Institute (EMI), in cooperation
with the LAFD, expanded the CERT materials to make them
applicable to all hazards.
In 2003, President Bush asked all
Americans to volunteer in the service of their country. The
Citizen Corps program was created to spearhead this effort to
harness the power of every individual through education,
training, and volunteer service to make communities safer,
stronger, and better prepared to respond to the threats of
terrorism, crime, public health issues, and disasters of all
kinds. CERT was selected as one of the primary programs offered
to the American public to meet this challenge.
Sarasota County Emergency Management Division’s CERT Program was
developed to support our community in this effort. Hurricane
Charley taught us how important preparedness and response are to
surviving a disaster. Empowered by this unique training, people
from community organizations, businesses industry, schools and
city and county employees can assemble as a CERT, or perform as
individual leaders in the initial phase of a disaster.
As of October 2004, Sarasota
County has CERT certified over 1100 Sarasota community
volunteers including teams from:
- Glen Oaks Ridge
- Hyatt
- The Isles of Palmer Ranch
- Longboat Key
- The Meadows
- Myakka Valley
- New Town Front Porch Association
- Sarasota Military Academy
- South Venice Civic Association
- Venice Gardens
This successful program continues
to evolve and expand.
The benefits of this program are
numerous. CERT has increased the overall level of public
disaster readiness in Sarasota County, provided emergency skills
that people may use in day-to-day emergencies, enhanced the bond
between government and populace, and increased community spirit. |
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The course consists of 20 hours,
with major emphasis given to hands-on training. The curriculum
consists of the following:
UNIT 1 Disaster preparedness
- Disaster preparedness / recent
disasters
- Hazard mitigation
UNIT 2 Fire safety
- Fire chemistry
- Fire fighting resources / fire suppression safety
- Reducing hazards in the home and workplace
- Hazardous material
UNIT 3 Disaster medical
operations 1
- Recognizing and treating
life-threatening conditions
- Triage
UNIT 4 Disaster medical
operations 2
- Functions of disaster medical
operations
- Establishing treatment areas
- Treating wounds, burns, etc.
UNIT 5 Light search and rescue
operations
- Search and rescue size-up
- Conducting search operations
- Conducting rescue operations
UNIT 6 CERT Organization
- CERT organization, decision
making and documentation
UNIT 7 Disaster psychology
- Team well being
- Working with survivors trauma
UNIT 8 Terrorism and CERT
- What is terrorism?
- Terrorist targets
- B-NICE indicators
- CERTS and terrorist incidents
UNIT 9 Course review and
disaster simulation
- Course review
- Disaster simulation
A refresher and recertification
class is held annually by Sarasota County Emergency Management
for all CERT certified members, giving CERT members a chance to
maintain and sharpen their skills. |
