CERT makes sure GV is ready for a disaster

Volunteers for Green Valley’s Community Emergency Response Team are never placed in unsafe situations, but they learn to do a lot to help themselves and others in an emergency until the professionals arrive, Bill Kerr, local CERT coordinator, told members of the Green Valley Forum last week at East Center.

Founded in 2003, the Green Valley CERT program has trained more than 330 volunteers, who assist the Green Valley Fire District, conduct training classes and follow-up sessions and participate in emergency drills.

In a series of eight classes at Green Valley Fire District headquarters, volunteers learn practical skills, such as how to use a fire extinguisher, and are called upon to put out a fire under controlled circumstances, Kerr said.

CERT volunteers also learn how to administer first aid for the “three big killers — bleeding, breathing and shock,” Kerr said.

Among other things, volunteers are taught how to make a basic splint, how to safely rescue a victim trapped under a pile of concrete, and how to triage, meaning to sort victims of a disaster according to priority medical needs.

Volunteers also learn about turning off utilities in the event of a gas leak or other event, setting up rehabilitation centers for stabilization of patients, setting up immunization clinics, evacuating neighborhoods and helping people deal with stress and displacement.

The CERT program was developed by the Los Angeles Fire Department in 1985 to train citizens affected by earthquakes to help emergency personnel before they arrived on the scene.

“The CERT program was adopted by the Federal Emergency Management Agency as applicable to all disasters in 1984 and, after the 9-11 terrorist attacks people decided hometown emergency preparedness wasn’t such a bad idea,” Kerr said.

“There are CERT chapters now in every state and the Green Valley group is one of the largest in Southern Arizona. We are incorporated as a non-profit so we can solicit businesses for contributions, apply for grants and be self-supporting,” said Kerr, who has coordinated the local group since its inception.

He said CERT supplies all equipment, such as vest, goggles, helmets, gloves and masks, adding that equipment and classes are free.

Upcoming classes

CERT will conduct a series of classes this month for GVR employees and others and will provide its regular classes for new volunteers in January.

Classes cover emergency planning, how to take care of yourself and others and how to get together a plan for an emergency, including having basic items, such as food, water, cash, gas, important papers, blankets, clothes and other items socked away. The group has an emergency checklist with an extensive list of items you should have on hand.

Other class topics in lectures and hands-on experiences include fire safety, emergency medical operations, search and rescue, CERT organization, disaster psychology and terrorism.

“Many people move to Green Valley because it’s a nice, quiet community,” Kerr said, but he noted that any community has potential problems. In Green Valley, these are flooding, a major highway or railroad disaster such as a hazardous materials spill, and the fact that the community is a well-established corridor for drug and human smuggling, including, possibly terrorists, he said.

Another major emergency CERT volunteers train for and are called out to help with are power outages, Kerr said.

“Power outages are very serious in Green Valley since so many residents use medical equipment. If the phone is out and you can’t use 9-1-1 for medical emergencies, can’t listen to the radio or TV to find out what to do, that’s a serious situation,” he said.

Regarding a question on liability risks, Kerr said CERT volunteers are covered by state law and Pima County, “which basically means that as long as you respond to an emergency with the training CERT gives you, you are covered,” he said.

“Joining CERT is a great way to help yourself gain more confidence to deal with an emergency, help your loved ones, your neighbors, your community and your country. The basic idea is to learn to take care of yourselves and others until first responders arrive,” Kerr explained.

For more information on CERT, to schedule a talk for your organization, sign up for classes or get a copy of CERT’s emergency checklist, call Kerr at 399-1234 or e-mail him at bilpak@cox.net.

Kathy Engle is a freelance writer who lives in Amado.