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Mammoth Lakes, CA
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Tuesday, January 6, 2009
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CERT makes a permanent appearance at the high altitude level |
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Friday, 21 September 2007 |
Mammoth Times Staff Writer
 CERT volunteers train in triage techniques so they are prepared in case a medical emergency arises in their community.PHOTO COURTESY OF WWW.CITIZENCORP.COM
“What they found was a unique concept in which all citizens take an active role in the training and response for disasters,” said Lt. Short. “During times of major disasters these trained citizen volunteers would assist local public safety in rescue operations within their assigned neighborhood.”
In September 1985, a Los Angeles City investigation team was sent to Mexico City following an earthquake there that registered a magnitude 8.1 on the Richter scale and killed more than 10,000, injured more than 30,000 and displaced 100,000 persons. Mexico City had no training program for citizens prior to the disaster, but large groups of volunteers organized themselves and performed light search and rescue operations. Volunteers were credited with more than 800 successful rescues; unfortunately, more than 100 of the untrained volunteers died during the 15-day rescue operation. “The incident in Mexico City reinforces the need to have trained volunteers,” said Lt. Short.
In 1986 the City of Los Angeles Fire Department developed a pilot program to train a group of leaders in a neighborhood watch organization. Expansion of the program, however, was not feasible due to limited city resources until an event occurred in 1987 that impacted the entire area.
On October 1, 1987, the Whittier Narrows earthquake underscored the threat of an area-wide major disaster and demonstrated the need to expedite the training of civilians to prepare for earthquakes and other emergencies.
After the Whittier Narrows earthquake, the City of Los Angeles took an aggressive role in protecting its citizens by creating the Disaster Preparedness Division within the Los Angeles Fire Department. Their objectives included:
Educate/train the public and government sectors in disaster preparedness
Research, evaluate and disseminate disaster information
Develop, train and maintain a network of Community Emergency Response Teams (CERTs)
In January 2002, CERT became part of the Citizen Corps, a unifying structure to link a variety of related volunteer activities to expand a community’s resources for crime prevention and emergency response. As of January 2004, 50 states, three territories and six foreign countries were using the CERT training.
In a move that can’t come soon enough, CERT training will soon be available in our area. “We all need to be self-sufficient in a disaster,” Short said. “When a disaster strikes the area our first response teams will be spread thin, so it’s important that community members take an active role and are able to respond quickly in the event of an emergency or disaster. If an emergency happens during peak ski season and there are 40,000 people in town we are going to have to rely on CERT volunteers to help wherever they are needed.”
Following a major disaster, first responders that provide fire and medical services will not be able to meet the demand for these services. Factors such as number of victims, communication failures and road blockages will prevent people from accessing emergency services they have come to expect at a moment’s notice through 911. People will have to rely on each other for help in order to meet their immediate life saving and life sustaining needs.
If we can predict that emergency services will not meet immediate needs following a major disaster, especially if there is no warning, as in an earthquake, and people will spontaneously volunteer, what can local governments do to prepare citizens for this eventuality?
The Mammoth Lakes Police Department, Mammoth Lakes Fire District and Mono County Public Health have entered into an agreement to oversee the formation of CERT, which will be made up of community members who volunteer their time to train and respond in the event of an emergency or disaster. Some of the training volunteers receive is in the area of Emergency Operations Center Functions. This includes answering phones, clerical assistance, radio operations, traffic control, light search and rescue, emergency shelter operations, assistance within an area of expertise such as engineering, construction and heavy equipment operation, fire suppression techniques and community outreach projects, such as disaster preparedness and crime prevention techniques.
“Part of the problem is that we are very short on public safety personnel,” stated Fire Chief Brent Harper. “Members from the CERT team can free up first responders by helping with EOC, traffic control and other operations that don't require them to be experts in the field.” The fire department will be directly involved and will be assigning one of its captains to be their coordinator.
CERTs are an investment of local government’s time and resources and are seen as a volunteer resource that can assist with public safety activities. When involved in such activities, CERT members must keep their safety in mind as their first priority and they must also 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, 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.
The initial training for CERT certification is 24 hours,” Short stated. “In addition, all volunteers will receive training in first aid/CPR.” Short said volunteers will continue to receive ongoing training through established meetings that will be held monthly. “We hope to have the first class starting some time in November 2007.” Instructors will be from the various agencies who are subject matter experts in the area related to disaster and emergency response. The number of classes has yet to be determined because they depend on the availability of the trainers. There will be no more than a dozen people per class.
Funding for CERT is made possible through a one time mini-grant awarded to Mono County Public Health for the purpose of enhancing public health emergency preparedness and disaster response for the Town of Mammoth Lakes and the County of Mono. A Medical Reserve Corps will also be incorporated within the CERT program as part of the grant requirement.
Medical Reserve Corps will consist of volunteers that are practicing, retired or otherwise employed medical professionals, such as doctors, nurses, paramedics, emergency medical technicians, pharmacists or nurses’ assistants. Public health officials can also volunteer for the MRC and community members without medical training can assist with administrative and other essential support functions.
Major emergencies can overwhelm the capabilities of first responders, particularly during the first 12 to 72 hours. Medical and other health volunteers can provide an important “surge” capacity during this critical period. They also can augment medical staff shortages at local medical and emergency facilities or provide field triage at a mass casualty incident. In other words, communities often need medically trained individuals and others to fill in the gaps in their emergency response plans and to improve their response capabilities overall.
“The TOML is very fortunate to have a wide range of dedicated and talented people that could serve the community in the event of an emergency or disaster,” stated Short. “The volunteers have to be over 18, will be subject to a background check, fingerprinted and interviewed.” Citizenship is not a requirement. Only a strong desire to serve your community in times of an emergency and a dedication and time commitment required to be part of a special organization.”
“Volunteerism is very important in our county whether it be through the Red Cross or with the volunteer fire department. It is crucial to have these volunteers in place because we can become overwhelmed very quickly in an emergency situation,” Harper said. “When an emergency happens, we get tons of phone calls from people who want to help. If they haven't had the necessary training it's difficult to integrate them into the process. If they sign up to become a CERT volunteer we know we can use them to the best of their capabilities.”
The advisory group, which has its first meeting on Sept. 19, will include Lt. Short from MLPD, Capt. Morrow from MLFD and Dr. Johnson from Mono County Health Department.
Those interested in joining or obtaining additional information regarding the Mammoth Lakes CERT program please contact Lieutenant Jim Short at the MLPD at (760) 934-2011, ext. 44.
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Last Updated ( Friday, 28 September 2007 )
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