MOUNT VERNON – Do you want to help your community in the event of a natural disaster? Do you have an interest in assisting local emergency services? Then you should join Knox County CERT, which is short for Community Emergency Response Team.
CERT basic training is a free, nine week program that educates individuals about disaster preparedness for hazards that may impact their area and trains them in basic disaster response skills, such as fire safety, light search and rescue, team organization, and disaster medical operations to prepare you to protect your family, friends and neighbors if the situation arises.
Once you have completed the basic training you are eligible to join your local CERT Team. The Knox County Ohio CERT Team will have monthly training in more advanced areas you would be eligible to attend such as Firefighter Rehabilitation, Animal Disaster Response, Emergency Communications with fun activities including mock disaster drills, and helping first responders when needed in our community for special events or if a disaster occurs in our area.
The dates, times, locations and topics with a short description are as follows:
April 12 6:00 p.m.-8:30 p.m. at the MVFD the topic will be Disaster Preparedness. This class will be taught by long time certified CERT Trainer and EMA Volunteer Pat Valentino. In this unit you will learn about:
Roles and Responsibilities for Community Preparedness: How everyone in a community has a role in disaster preparedness and response.
Elements of Disasters and their Impact on the Infrastructure: The potential effect of extreme emergencies and disasters on transportation; electrical service; telephone communication; availability of food, water, shelter and fuel; and emergency services.
Personal and Organizational Preparedness: How you can prepare in advance to improve the quality of your survival and to reduce the damage from hazards.
Role of CERTs: CERT organization, disaster and non-disaster roles, and laws that protect disaster workers from liability.
April 19 6:00 p.m.- 8:30 p.m. at the MVFD The topic is Fire Safety and Utility Controls. The class will be taught by Mount Vernon Fire Department Personnel. In this unit you will learn about:
*Fire Chemistry: How fire occurs, classes of fire, and choosing the correct means to extinguish each type of fire.
*Fire and Utility Hazards: Potential fire and utility hazards in the home and workplace, and fire prevention strategies
*CERT Sizeup: How to conduct the continual data-gathering and evaluation process at the scene of a disaster or emergency
*Fire Sizeup Considerations: How to evaluate fires, assess firefighting resources, and determine a course of action
*Portable Fire Extinguishers: Types of portable fire extinguishers and how to operate them § Fire Suppression Safety: How to decide if you should attempt to extinguish a fire; how to approach and extinguish a fire safely
*Hazardous Materials: How to identify potentially dangerous materials in storage, in transit, and in your home
April 26 6:00 p.m.- 8:30 p.m. at the MVFD The topic is Disaster Medical Operations Part 1. The class will be taught by Mount Vernon EMS Personnel. In this unit you will learn about:
*Life-Threatening Conditions: How to recognize and treat an airway obstruction, bleeding, and shock.
*Triage: Principles of triage and how to conduct triage evaluations.
May 3 6:00 p.m.- 8:30 p.m. at the MVFD The topic is Disaster Medical Operations Part 2 and will be taught by Mount Vernon EMS Personnel.
*In this unit you will learn about:
*Public Health Considerations: How to maintain hygiene and sanitation.
*Functions of Disaster Medical Operations: What the five major functions of disaster medical operations are and how they are set up.
*Disaster Medical Treatment Areas: How to establish them and what their functions are.
*Patient Evaluation: How to perform a head-to-toe assessment to identify and treat injuries.
*Basic Treatment — How to: · Treat burns · Dress and bandage wounds · Treat fractures, dislocations, sprains, and strains · Treat hypothermia · *Treat heat-related injuries · Control nasal bleeding · Treat bites and stings.
May 10 6:00 p.m.- 8:30 p.m. at the MVFD The topic is Light Search and Rescue Operations. In this unit you will learn about:
*Search and Rescue Sizeup: How to size up the situation in which the search and rescue teams will operate.
*Conducting Interior and Exterior Search Operations: How to search systematically for disaster survivors.
*Conducting Rescue Operations: Safe techniques for lifting, leveraging, cribbing, and survivor removal.
May 17 6:00 p.m.- 8:30 p.m. at the MVFD The topic is CERT Organization. This unit will be taught by the Ohio Emergency Management Agency SW Region Planner, Knox County CERT Team Coordinator Ronica K. Bradley, and Knox County CERT Team Member Mike Kochheiser.
In this unit, you will learn about:
*CERT Organization: How to organize and deploy CERT resources according to CERT organizational principles.
*Rescuer Safety: How to protect your own safety and your buddy’s during search and rescue. Documentation: Strategies for documenting situation and resource status.
*Team Organization: A tabletop exercise to apply your knowledge of team organization.
May 24 6:00 p.m.- 8:30 p.m. at the MVFD The topic is Disaster Psychology. This class will be taught by a Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner
In this unit you will learn about:
*Disaster Psychology: The psychological impact of a disaster on rescuers and survivors and how to provide “psychological first aid.”
*Caring for Yourself, Your Buddy, and Survivors: Steps one can take individually and as part of a CERT before, immediately following, and after a disaster.
May 31 6:00 p.m.- 8:30 p.m. at the MVFD The topic is Terrorism and CERT. This unit will be taught by the Knox County Emergency Management Agency Director Mark Maxwell and long time certified CERT Trainer and EMA Volunteer Pat Valentino. In this unit you will learn about:
*What Terrorism Is: The definition of terrorism and terrorist goals.
*Terrorist Targets: How terrorists choose their targets.
*Terrorist Weapons: The weapons that terrorists are known or are suspected to have and the risk posed by various terrorist weapons.
CBRNE Indicators: Cues that help to identify when a terrorist attack may have occurred or may be imminent.
*Preparing at Home, Work, and in Your Neighborhood: Ways to prepare for a terrorist incident.
*CERTs and Terrorist Incidents: CERT protocols for terrorist incidents and protective action following an event.
June 7 6:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at the Knox County Emergency Management Agency and will be taught by Knox County CERT Team Coordinator Ronica K. Bradley, and Knox County CERT Team Member Mike Kochheiser. In this unit you will:
*Review of Key Points from the Course
*A Final Open Book Exam
*A Final Exercise Mini Mock Disaster
To join the CERT Team you must attend all 9 classes. If you are not available for one or more of the classes a make-up class will be provided for you upon request. Cut off for Registration will be April 10th. Refreshments will be provided. You must be at least 18 to participate in these classes. To register contact organizer Ronica Bradley, Knox County CERT Coordinator, cert@co.knox.oh.us or 740-973-8725.
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