CERT Classes Continue in Loma Linda

On Aug. 6 the Loma Linda Fire Department held Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) training for new students. The training classes are free and consist of seven classes that students must attend. The main goal of the class is to make sure that the community is prepared and able to provide assistance in the case of a disaster. Emergency services coordinator Debra Kreske said, “One of the goals here in our city is to be able to prepare people to take care of themselves following a large disaster because fire and police will probably not be there for them right away following a large disaster. What we’re teaching them is to take care of themselves first, and then their neighbors, and then the community.” CERT members get 20 hours of training on basic medical aid, light search and rescue, disaster preparedness, and team operations. Around 30 students came to the class to continue learning about disaster preparedness. Kreske noted that the classes max at 30 students per CERT course, and many are interested in learning—about 100 people are on a waiting list, she noted. “We accept people from all cities, and we kind of look at this as preparing as a whole community [to be ready for emergencies]. We have people in the class from Redlands, San Bernardino, and Colton and the different cities so we don’t turn anyone away,” Kreske said. One of the class participants, Daniel Shea, said that one of the reasons why he came out was because of his business, No Worries Prepper. “I started my own business—a preparedness business—here locally in Loma Linda. I’m getting more involved in the preparedness world and I thought it would be a good way to give back in my community and network with people in the preparedness world.” He also went on to say that he thinks disaster preparedness is extremely important and the CERT courses are easy to understand and follow. He said, “The teachers here have been really great and teach at a pace that many people are going to understand. There are 14-year-olds and 80-year-olds in here and I think they’ve done a good job.” On top of being very understandable, the class is also very exciting and enlightening. Another training participant, Tamar Boswell stated, “Loma Linda is in the path of an earthquake that’s coming that has to do with the San Andreas Fault. That’s new information for me because I’m not from here; I just got here about 8 months ago, so I am learning all this. I always knew that California is earthquake-prone. But when they went into depth to show us the information, I thought it was amazing. So that really now has raised an awareness in me about what I really need to do in order to prepare for a disaster such as that.” After participants complete the course, they are rewarded with a backpack, helmet, vest, safety glasses, gloves, and a student notebook. Kreske stated, “They get gear to get them started to be able to respond in a disaster.”