Palo Alto Offering Free Community Emergency Response Team Classes

PALO ALTO, CA -- Want to become trained as a member of the City of Palo Alto Office of Emergency Services' Community Emergency Response Team? New classes are coming up soon, and you don't even have to be a Palo Alto resident to attend.

The CERT program trains community members in basic disaster response skills, such as small fire suppression, light search and rescue, and disaster medical operations. Using the training learned in the classroom and during exercises, CERT members can assist others in their neighborhood or workplace following an event when professional responders are not immediately available to help.

The CERT curriculum includes 24 hours of training during seven sessions, and courses are offered twice a year by the Office of Emergency Services.

The Spring 2017 session occurs from 6:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. on April 17, 19, 24, 26 and May 1 and 3, with a five-hour "field day" from noon to 5 p.m. on Sunday, May 7. Students must attend and complete all sessions to become certified. The location is to be determined, but it will be in the immediate Palo Alto/Stanford area, according to the PAPD.

There's no fee, and you do not need to be a Palo Alto resident to participate. Space is limited, so interested parties are invited to register ASAP to ensure getting a spot.

The Fall 2017 session is from 6:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. on September 12, 14, 19, 21, 26, and 28, with the five-hour "field day" from noon to 5 p.m. on Saturday, September 30. The location for this session is also to be determined.

For either 2017 session, register yourself online at https://veoci.com/veoci/p/w/gk... or call the Palo Alto Office of Emergency Services (OES) at (650) 617-3197 with any questions.

If your schedule does not line up with either of these courses, you can add your name to a waitlist (which is included in the registration link above), or to register for a CERT class offered by a neighborhoring city: Mountain View OES (see http://mountainview.gov/depts/fire/preparedness/cert.asp), Redwood City Fire (see https://www.redwoodcity.org/departments/fire-department/cert), or Sunnyvale OES (see http://ecityhall.sunnyvale.ca.gov/contact/pssr.aspx).

Image via Palo Alto police