COMMUNITY EMERGENCY RESPONSE TEAM TRAINING OFFERED

The county is offering Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) Training beginning in March.  CERT members are volunteers who offer support to first responders during large scale emergencies or assist with non-emergency projects to improve safety in the community.  Each session is free and includes 30 hours of classroom and hands on training.  To register call Bob at 270-7285.

The classes are offered by the County of Maui Civil Defense Agency, in partnership with the County of Maui Department of Fire and Public Safety.  There will be five sessions hosted this year that will be offered in different districts of the island.  Classes are held weekday evenings and during the day on Saturdays. Sessions will be offered in Kahului, Kihei, Pukalani and Lahaina; the first 2009 training sessions begins Monday, March 2 in Kahului.

CERT training classes help prepare individuals to respond to emergency situations in their communities and train them in basic disaster response skills such as fire safety, light search and rescue, damage assessment and disaster medical operations. During emergencies, CERT members can give critical support to first responders, provide immediate assistance to victims, and organize spontaneous volunteers at a disaster site. CERT members can also assist with non-emergency projects that help improve the safety of the community.

CERT training is accredited by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). For more information or to register for the training, call Bob Collum, County of Maui Civil Defense Agency Staff Specialist, at 270-7285. For general CERT information online, visit http://www.citizencorps.gov/cert/.

(Posted by Wendy Osher © 2009)