Ocean City, Maryland โ (January 29, 2019): Emergency Services personnel from the Town of Ocean City and Worcester County are teaming up to offer a community-wide training course to residents. The Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) basic training program will be offered for approximately nine weeks in the spring at the Ocean City Public Safety Building.
Designed as a grassroots initiative, the CERT program educates community volunteers about disaster preparedness for the hazards that may impact their area. It is specifically structured to allow local and state program managers to have the flexibility to form their programs in the way that best suits their community by training participants in basic disaster response skills. CERT volunteers are trained to respond safely, responsibly and effectively to emergency situations, but they can also support their community in non-emergency events as well.
โThe program began in 1993 and has since impacted communities across the country, in all 50 states with over 2,700 local CERT programs nationwide and 600,000 individuals trained in the program,โ said Joseph Theobald, Director of Emergency Services for the Town of Ocean City. โCERT offers a consistent, nationwide approach to volunteer training and organization that professional responders can rely on during disaster situations, which allows them to focus on more complex tasks. Through CERT, the capabilities to prepare for, respond to and recover from disasters is enhanced.โ
Sessions in the CERT basic training program include Disaster Preparedness, Disaster Fire Safety/Suppression, Disaster Medical Operations I, Disaster Medical Operations II, and Light Search and Rescue/Hazmat, followed by a program wrap-up session, practical work stations, and testing and graduation.
To register for the training or to learn more, contact Amanda Lewis at 410.723.6616 or email alewis@oceancitymd.gov or visit www.ocmdemergency.com.
