CERTifiable

Last weekend I attended CERT training. Community Emergency Response Team. Our community is small, not even an incorporated city. There is no way out of town that doesn't involve crossing a bridge - unless you go by boat and then we don't have a port, just a beach. We are at the end of the road. Fact is, in a major disaster, we'll be the last ones they remember and the last ones they'll get help to even when they do remember. So we were learning how to help ourselves.

The training is pretty good. It's an all-purpose emergency training, so what we were learning was a variety of skills. A lot of it was knowing our limitations. We learned not to try to put out a fire bigger than a garbage can because that's just too big for our resources. And triage so we can prioritize the wounded for emergency services when they do arrive.

A lot of the focus of the attendees is what happens when we're cut off for a long time. If the tsunami ever really hits, all our bridges will go out. And probably all of our communications. So we need to be prepared. Even in less dramatic circumstances we could be cut off (December 2007 ring any bells?) So we're learning to be prepared. I hope our group will have occasional if not regular drills to keep us in practice.

Our simulation is coming this weekend. Saturday is scheduled for a major disaster of some sort. (They did promise no firefighting. The volunteer fire department might be too busy to save us if it goes south, so they won't take a chance on it.) But we will have something. I'm voting for an earthquake. :]