Now in its 26th year, one can rightfully claim this program is CERTainly a success story written by the Newport Beach Fire Department.
CERT, the acronym for the Community Emergency Response Team, has trained more than 2,500 citizen members in “disaster preparedness, response and resilience-building,” shared David Gibson, the department’s Fire Services Coordinator and CERT Program Manager
Although the program’s once lofty membership of more than 600 dropped dramatically to roughly 200 during the pandemic years, Gibson says with pride that he has helped boost the current number of CERT volunteers to more than 400. And with this growth has come “a new level of preparedness” made possible by “significant investments in preparedness ensuring that CERT members have the tools they need to be effective,” Gibson said.
This preparedness includes the purchase of a new, 40-foot container to store critical CERT equipment, allowing for better organization and readiness. The existing CERT disaster trailer has been revitalized and made “fully mission-capable for deployment in natural and man-made disasters to support emergency response efforts, while critical inventory has been refreshed and expanded to provide more modern materials and equipment,” Gibson added.
This equipment is next to useless without fully trained, responsive— and enthusiastic — volunteers.
In addition to the 20-hour basic course, Newport’s refreshed program now provides members with “real-world, life-saving skills to enhance preparedness,” Gibson said. Those enhancements include First Aid, CPR and AED (Automated External Defibrillator) certifications to better equip members in their responses; Stop the Bleeding techniques to help minimize hemorrhaging in the badly injured; and Search and Rescue Pattern Training to systematically locate missing persons in urban and wilderness settings.
Additionally, advanced training includes skills for volunteers to become community leaders in emergency preparedness.
“With the recent disaster events that occurred in Los Angeles, more attention has been placed on family emergency preparations. The CERT programs gives residents the training to to safely help themselves, family and neighbors,” said CERT member Doak Hefner, who donates seven hours a week to the program. “Making a 72-hour Go Bag for yourself and family will help with those preparations.”
Explaining why he signed up for CERT, Patrick Monaghan said, “When I was in the Navy, I enjoyed firefighting and training. After moving to California, I kept asking about volunteer opportunities. Everyone kept pointing me to the CERT program; it’s the closest thing to being a volunteer firefighter.”
Resident Paul Marr said, “A good friend of mine is a retired fire chief, and another buddy was a volunteer fire fighter. Both spoke highly of this kind of training, and it sounded like a great way to give back to the community; this was the closest program available that offered that opportunity. I really have enjoyed hearing the different perspectives from the instructors, each with their own area of expertise…I like the idea of taking more advanced courses and being able to actually assist the fire department, not just learn in the classroom.”
Besides learning a broad spectrum of life saving skills, one comes away from CERT training with a magnified appreciation of the skills, dedication and selflessness our firefighters possess every day in their mission to protect us all.
To join the Newport Beach Community Emergency Response Team (CERT), contact the Newport Beach Fire Department at (949) 644-3112, or email nbcert@nbfd.net. You can also join and/or find more information on the Fire Department’s page on the city’s website at www.newportbeachca.gov/government/departments/fire-department.
