Your community needs your help. The Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) program trains volunteers to assist their communities when a disastrous event overwhelms or delays the community’s professional response. Become a member by contacting the City of Salem Fire Department’s Emergency Manager.

CERT Members

CERT members can assist others by applying the basic response and organizational skills that they learn during training. These skills can help save and sustain lives following a disaster until help arrives. CERT skills also apply to daily emergencies.

In a 21-hour course, response team members are trained to take care of themselves and help others in their communities for the first three days following a disaster. This is when debris-clogged or damaged roads, disrupted communications, or a high volume of calls may prevent access by emergency response personnel.

CERT members maintain and refine their skills by participating in exercises and activities. They can attend supplemental training opportunities offered by the sponsoring agency and others to increase their skills.

Finally, CERT members can volunteer for projects that improve community emergency preparedness.

Learn Valuable Skills

• Types of hazards most likely to affect your homes and communities
• The function of CERT and your role in immediate response
• How to prepare you and your neighbors for a disaster
• Identify and reduce potential fire hazards in your homes and workplaces
• Work as a team to apply basic fire suppression to extinguish small fires
• How to use basic first aid for various injuries
• How to apply techniques for opening airways, controlling bleeding, and treating shock
• How to conduct triage, perform head-to-toe assessments, and to set up a treatment area
• Identify planning and size-up requirements for potential search and rescue situations
• Common techniques for searching a structure
• Safe techniques for debris removal and victim extrication
• Ways to protect rescuers during search and rescue

How to Sign Up

• Contact the City Emergency Manager to learn more or sign up.
• You will need to complete a CERT training course.
  
  • Courses consist of a series of classes, which are usually three hours each.
  • Class size is limited, and pre-registration is required.
  • See the training schedule below.

Training Schedule

For more information and training please go to the Surviving Cascadia website or the Salem CERT Facebook page.