Spring CERT Class!

The West County CERT group has scheduled our spring basic Community Emergency Response Team training for Friday May 21st (6-9 P.M.), Saturday May 22nd (8 A.M to 5 P.M.), Friday June 3rd (6-9 P.M.), and Saturday June 4th (8 A.M. to 5 P.M.). The break in the two weekend blocks of training is due to the Memorial Day Weekend.

The skills taught during the CERT class are some of the skills you may need in the event of a emergency or disaster. Please keep in mind, during a significant event or disaster, first responders may be 3 to 7 days away from reaching you. The ability to be self sufficient may be critical.

Please consider signing up for this valuable class. For more information go to:

http://www.westcountycert.com/

West County CERT Graduates 52 People

Are you prepared for an emergency? Your neighbors are. West County Emergency Response Team is pleased to announce the graduation of 52 community members from the basic CERT academy on Saturday, October 23rd, 2010. They are your neighbors and co-workers, citizen volunteers trained in disaster preparedness and to compliment emergency services in the event of an emergency.

The Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) Program educates people about disaster preparedness for hazards that may impact their area and trains them in basic disaster response skills, such as safety, light search and rescue, team organization, and disaster medical operations. Using the training learned in the classroom and during exercises, CERT members can assist others in their neighborhood or workplace following an event when professional responders are not immediately available to help. CERT members are also encouraged to support emergency response agencies by taking a more active role in emergency preparedness projects in their community.

The 80 active members of West County CERT respond to a variety of call-outs both pre-planned events and emergency incidents from wildfires and flooding to traffic control and missing persons. You may have seen some of them most recently at the National Night Out, Seal Beach Founder’s Day Parade, Neighbor 4 Neighbor disaster preparedness events, and the Wings, Wheels and Rotors Expo at the Joint Forces Training Base. They’ve also helped with sandbagging during flooding, traffic control during parades, health and safety expos, flyer notifications, runners at base camp for large fires and any other city or county events where extra assistance is needed.

Over 350 of your friends and neighbors have been trained in emergency preparedness throughout the six cities since 2007. If you live or work in the West County cities of Buena Park, Cypress, La Palma, Los Alamitos, Seal Beach or Westminster and are interested in becoming a CERT member, please go to www.westcountycert.com for more information on the next academy. Two academies are held each year so space is limited. Sign up now for the next class.

CERT Training in October

WHAT IS A CERT?

A CERT is a group of responsible, trained individuals who have come together to form a skilled group of Disaster Service Workers. The CERT Program can be used in neighborhoods, businesses, and schools. The CERT members realize that in the event of a major disaster they will have to rely on their neighbors and themselves to handle emergencies until professional help arrives.

October Class Information
West County CERT

West County CERT Graduation

On Saturday, May 8, 2010, West County Community Emergency Response Team (C.E.R.T.) graduated another 55 community members in the first of two basic C.E.R.T. academies held this year. Emergency services bureaus from six Orange County cities comprise the West County C.E.R.T. group: Buena Park, Cypress, Los Alamitos, La Palma, Seal Beach, and Westminster.

This latest basic C.E.R.T. academy provided community members with specialized training in disaster preparation, search and rescue, fire prevention, medical operations, terrorism awareness, critical incident stress debriefing, team organization, and the incident command system. The academy consists of a 20-hour commitment over the course of two weekends. For their final test, class members participated in a large-scale terrorist attack exercise. With additional training, class members may move on to the advanced C.E.R.T. program to become full members of West County C.E.R.T.

West County C.E.R.T. members respond to a variety of call-outs both pre-planned events and emergency incidents. They have responded to everything from assisting on county-wide wild fires, flooding incidents, to traffic control during parades. Recently West County C.E.R.T. was instrumental in assisting during a Point of Distribution (POD) event during the H1N1 flu virus.

Community members living or working within the West County C.E.R.T. jurisdictions interested in attending the next C.E.R.T. academy (tentatively planned for fall 2010) may visit http://www.westcountycert.com/ for more information or send an email to westcountycert@yahoo.com. The academy fills up quickly and space is limited.

Emergency Preparation Information

The Daily Breeze compiled emergency preparation tips into this one page guide.

You can find more links to emergency preparation information on the Los Alamitos Police Department website here. Guides and tips can also be picked up at the lobby of the the Police Department during regular business hours, Monday through Friday from 7:30 A.M. to 5:30 P.M.

Those interested in participating in CERT, the Community Emergency Response Team, can find more information here or at www.westcountycert.com.

Be Safe. Be Prepared.

Learn more about CERT

The Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) Program educates people 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. Using the training learned in the classroom and during exercises, CERT members can assist others in their neighborhood or workplace following an event when professional responders are not immediately available to help. CERT members also are encouraged to support emergency response agencies by taking a more active role in emergency preparedness projects in their community.

If you are interested in attending the next West-County CERT course or have any questions, the City of Los Alamitos CERT coordinator is Corporal Rick Moore who can be reached at 562-431-2255 ext 445 or rmoore@ci.los-alamitos.ca.us.

Read more about West Orange County Regional CERT at their website!

CERT Class Begins April 3 - Sign Up Now!

ARE YOU PREPARED FOR A DISASTER?

West County CERT offers its 5th presentation and welcomes the City of Westminster to the team!

West County CERT, which includes the cities of Buena Park, Cypress, La Palma, Los Alamitos, Seal Beach, Westminster and the Orange County Fire Authority, will be hosting its fifth CERT class in the City of Cypress beginning Thursday April 3rd, 2008 from 6:00pm to 9:00pm.

CERT, which stands for Community Emergency Response Team, is an eight week 24 hour course that will meet consecutively on Thursday nights through May 22nd, 2008. Students will learn skills in basic first aid, fire suppression, light search and rescue, and disaster psychology, all of which will be critical during a significant event such as an earthquake, fire, or tsunami.

All members of the public who are above the age of 15 are encouraged to attend. Class size is limited to 60 students, and it is anticipated that reserved seating will reach capacity quickly!

For more information about the class or to reserve your seat, please contact the Los Alamitos Police Department Emergency Services Coordinator Sergeant Bruce McAlpine at (562) 431 - 2255 ext. 445 or visit http://www.westcountycert.com/ for details.

CERT Poster

CERT Registration Form

September is National Preparedness Month

National Preparedness Month is a nationwide effort held each September to encourage Americans to take simple steps to prepare for emergencies in their homes, businesses and schools. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security sponsors national Preparedness Month 2007. The goal of the month is to increase public awareness about the importance of preparing for emergencies and to encourage individuals to take action.

Throughout September, Homeland Security will work with a wide variety of organizations, including local, state and federal government agencies and the private sector, to highlight the importance of family emergency preparedness and promote individual involvement through events and activities across the nation.

EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS LINKS

Federal

Preparedness Month Center
http://www.ready.gov/america/npm07/index.html
US Readiness Center
http://www.ready.gov/
Department of Homeland Security
http://www.dhs.gov/
FEMA
http://www.fema.gov/
Citizen’s Corps
http://www.citizencorps.gov/

California

Governor’s Office of Homeland Security
http://www.homeland.ca.gov/
Office of Emergency Services
http://www.oes.ca.gov/
Emergency Digital Information Service
http://www.edis.ca.gov/

County of Orange

County Readiness Center
http://www.readyoc.org/
Fire Authority
http://www.ocfa.org/

City of Los Alamitos

Emergency Preparation Center
http://www.losalamitospolice.org/support/emergencyprep.htm
West County CERT
http://westcountycert.com/

Red Cross

National
http://www.redcross.org/
County
http://www.oc-redcross.org/

C.E.R.T. Class #4 Begins September 27, 2007

West County CERT, which includes the cities of Buena Park, Cypress, La Palma, Los Alamitos, Seal Beach, and the Orange County Fire Authority, will be hosting its fourth CERT class in the City of La Palma beginning Thursday September 27th from 6:00pm to 9:00pm. CERT (Community Emergency Response Team) is an eight week course that will meet consecutively on Thursday nights through November 15th. Students learn skills in basic first aid, fire suppression, search and rescue, and disaster psychology, all of which will be critical during a disaster.

All members of the public who are above the age of 15 are encouraged to attend, and class is limited to 50 students. For more information please contact Sergeant Bruce McAlpine City of Los Alamitos Police Department Emergency Services Coordinator at 431-2255 ext 445 or see http://www.westcountycert.com/ for details.

If you are interested in signing up you can contact Police Department Secretary Catherine Howard at 431-2255 ext.401