FEMA/ CERT

self ^ | 4th of July | self

[bboop]

Just curious for some feedback - CERT volunteers marched in our little Independence Day parade. They offer a course in 'emergency preparedness training.' Seems like a good thing, but I'd like to hear from folks who know. thanks

[leaning conservative]

Don’t laugh at my question, but how would HAM radio continue w/ everything else down? I am now really intrigued.

[Godzilla]

I’m a level 1 CERT member with the local fire department. We are kind of a swiss army knife for the FD. I got involved since the individual in a disaster are their own first responder and getting the training i’ve learned the local disaster response system as well as skills I can use for my neighbors until help can come.

[wastedyears]

Would HAM radio work in the event of an EMP?

[wastedyears]

Don’t laugh at my question, but how would HAM radio continue w/ everything else down? I am now really intrigued.

That's what I'm wondering. Not everyone will have a generator. If that's the case, their radio equipment is useless. What about an EMP? The radio equipment is useless too unless it's in a Faraday cage.

[mouser]

A lot of the ham radios run on 12 volts dc like your car I have radios in my truck and have talked to the world driving down the road

If stationary a couple of 12 volt batteries and a tent,coax and a antenna and you are set for a few days

Remember a antenna can be as simple as two wires one tied to center of coax and one to the shield as long as the right length

[mouser]

In case of a EMP I am sure some of the radios would but some of the emergency guys keep their to go radio in a metal box with no antenna attached they would survive I believe

The problem is we have never had a EMP so there is a lot of questions we cannot answer they may be worse than people think or a lot less of a problem

[bboop]

Happy Independence Day, FReepers. You are the best. Great answers, great advice. Thanks so much.

[logi_cal869]

There is an utter load of mish-mash in reply to your query. I don’t have a lot of time, so take this for what it’s worth:

ANYONE can take CERT training in our area. It’s free, supported by FEMA, usually assisted by the local municipal Emergency Management organization and EMS. CERT “members” sign up to be on callout lists, are background-checked and provided City/CERT IDs. Generally, ALL CERT trainee graduates generally get a bag with basic safety stuff, including CERT hardhat, gas shut off tool and the CERT training binder. Residents not signing up go home with their training & bags (no background checks, no IDs, not on a callout list)...referred to as a dormant asset in the event of an emergency.

CERT members are on a callout list and, in the event of mobilization (a local or regional emergency), are to report accordingly IF they see fit (obviously seeing to their own families first) as a 2nd line of support to EMS services. When mobilized in our area, we then fall under the umbrella of liability of our local municipal organization as “mobilized volunteers.” (that’s an important distinction)

HAMS are our organization’s weakest part, as local HAMS want nothing to do with the CERT amateurs (I’m a HAM and a CERT). HAM will vary from one organization to the next. Zero consistency. Local HAM services are usually coordinated through ARES and municipal emergency management, including County. Our local repeaters are volunteer-maintained; I have no idea about other areas.

I have an ethical problem with one of the municipalities in our area misusing CERT members for volunteer activities unrelated to preparedness outreach. I also have problems with one municipal organization dictating what sort of supplemental training we may seek to provide other members as an all-volunteer organization (water purification, for example...a recent meeting of which was basically “rely on your local utility water trucks”).

I also have an ethical problem about our local emergency management (state and feds, too) parroting about the BIG ONE in our area, trying scare tactics to get people involved. It’s highly-ineffective as an outreach technique.

I have my biggest ethical problem with promotion of “easy” solutions to get neighbors to connect. This includes the BS app NextDoor and Map Your Neighborhood. I will NOT knock on my neighbor’s door and ask them what assets they can bring to bear in the event of an emergency. If they want to be on a CERT team and volunteer that info, that’s their business, but I think you all know where I’m coming from in this respect.

Put simply, every CERT organization is basically built around neighborhood organizations and each local organization is dependent upon the personality of the CERT district leader. This goes for the organization as a whole under the local emergency management head and the municipal employee responsible for running the CERT program. The success of each district relies heavily upon that local organization’s neighborhood leader (elected by the neighbors) and the CERT district leader (usually elected by the CERT steering committee, all volunteer CERT members).

Other than the problems I outline, ours is run fairly well, despite the fact that the new emergency management head tried to dictate the type of training volunteers would provide themselves and a lot of good people abandoned the program.

Here’s the rub: If you care about what your local & county government is doing in regards to rubbing shoulders with the feds and in regards to emergency preparedness, get involved in CERT.

It’s pretty basic: If you’re on the inside, you at least have tacit knowledge of what’s going on...I recommend it. You have no idea what you will learn.