First CERT activation

[Carol]

After being on my city's CERT team for nearly a year, I received my first formal activation due to a snow/ice storm causing major power outages.

CERT is voĺuntary, and it was Thanksgiving morning. It would have been possible to ignore the request, stay home, gaze out the window, and relax.

The weather had thrown a wrench in my own plans. While I did have a place to go, it was tough to push the storm out of my mind. I did not lose power, and even if I did, i had a generator, house batteries, and plenty of fuel.

I do not have a formal uniform for CERT. I do have a polo shirt, which I ixnayed in lieu of a proper base layer. I also had a name tag, a hard hat, which seemed essential, and a two-sizes-too-big safety vest, which easily fit over my bomber jacket.

As soon as I left home....something different happened. A well-dressed lady stopped her car and helped me brush off my car. As I drove down busy streer with my window open, the sight of my hard hat spawned cheers, and honks of support - most often from other folks in hard hats. While I didnt meet many people, those I did seemed genuinely happy to see me, even whem I said I was just a vokunteer with the city and was not a person that would be making repairs.

Not the way I intended to spend thanksgiving but holy cow it was rewarding. Pics to follow

 

[Takai]

Well done. Our CERT is in limbo at the moment. We were attached to Human Services but the county shut down the entire department about 2 months ago. Still hoping that we can get a new home quickly.

 

[Rich Parsons]

After being on my city's CERT team for nearly a year, I received my first formal activation due to a snow/ice storm causing major power outages.

CERT is voĺuntary, and it was Thanksgiving morning. It would have been possible to ignore the request, stay home, gaze out the window, and relax.

The weather had thrown a wrench in my own plans. While I did have a place to go, it was tough to push the storm out of my mind. I did not lose power, and even if I did, i had a generator, house batteries, and plenty of fuel.

I do not have a formal uniform for CERT. I do have a polo shirt, which I ixnayed in lieu of a proper base layer. I also had a name tag, a hard hat, which seemed essential, and a two-sizes-too-big safety vest, which easily fit over my bomber jacket.

As soon as I left home....something different happened. A well-dressed lady stopped her car and helped me brush off my car. As I drove down busy streer with my window open, the sight of my hard hat spawned cheers, and honks of support - most often from other folks in hard hats. While I didnt meet many people, those I did seemed genuinely happy to see me, even whem I said I was just a vokunteer with the city and was not a person that would be making repairs.

Not the way I intended to spend thanksgiving but holy cow it was rewarding. Pics to follow

Pictures !!!

You Promised Pictures

 

[Carol]

I did! Sorry, busy weekend Will get them up ASAP

 

[Carol]

Well done. Our CERT is in limbo at the moment. We were attached to Human Services but the county shut down the entire department about 2 months ago. Still hoping that we can get a new home quickly.

Oh my! That is disheartening. Is there a local Emergency Management office that can keep the program going?

Ours has been going very well -- so well that we are creating a management team and expanding to include surrounding towns. I'm not interested in expanding my own role within CERT at the moment as I'm still with Parks as well. But I'm glad to see the program going well.

Going to a special Winter SKYWARN training class tonight, and looking forward to that.

 

[Takai]

No one has stepped forward yet. We are still hopefully that the Fire Dept will pick us up but, time will tell.

 

[jks9199]

No one has stepped forward yet. We are still hopefully that the Fire Dept will pick us up but, time will tell.

Be proactive. Go to them, with a plan and be able to show how you can help. Also -- check with the police; look into the Volunteers in Police Service program (Volunteers In Police Service Ready.gov or Volunteers in Police Service - VIPS are a couple of links) as a possible vehicle. I'd stress how the CERT unit can be a force multiplier; a way to get things done while keeping their resources free, and how you can do training for other groups (that was a big part of what the CERT group my dad was involved in did.)

 

[Takai]

We have been. Our previous coordinator has had a couple of conferences with some of the potential powers that be. Our PD isn't interested. That was how we ended up attached to the County Human Services in the first place. We have a really good chance that District 2 will pick us up, we have a really good working relationship with them but, the wheels of bureaucracy move slowly...very slowly.