The Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) program helps train people to be better prepared to respond to emergency situations in their communities. When emergencies happen, 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 help with non-emergency projects that help imp
rove the safety of the community. The CERT course is taught in the community by a trained team of first responders and community members who have completed a CERT train-the-trainer course conducted by their state training office for emergency management, or Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Emergency Management Institute (EMI), located in Emmitsburg, MD. CERT training includes disaster preparedness, disaster fire suppression, basic disaster medical operations, light search and rescue operations and terrorism awareness. Over the next two years, the CERT program aims to double the number of participants, with more than 400,000 individuals completing the 20-plus hours of training. Train-the-trainer sessions will be held in all 56 states and territories over the next year to expand the program throughout the United States. In 2004 the City of Phoenix Homeland Defense Bureau set in motion the CERT program for the City of Phoenix which is one of hundreds of community's nationwide offering this training. CERT training promotes a partnership between emergency services and citizens of communities throughout the city. The goal of CERT is to train members of Phoenix neighborhoods, community organizations and workplaces in basic disaster survival skills. The Community Emergency Response Team concept was developed and implemented by the Los Angeles City Fire Department (LAFD) in 1985. The Whittier Narrows earthquake in 1987 underscored the area-wide threat of a major disaster in California. Further, it confirmed the need for training civilians to meet their immediate needs. As a result, the LAFD created the Disaster Preparedness Division with the purpose of training citizens and private and government employees. Currently there are thousands of CERT teams around the United States. After a disaster, first responders (fire and police) and other government service providers are overwhelmed. Public services cannot be delivered everywhere that help is needed. Experience has shown that in a disaster setting ordinary citizens make over 80 per cent of successful rescues as they respond to the emergency in their community. However, many untrained volunteer rescuers actually may cause harm or become injured in the process.
