Why Should You Do CERT?
By Gabrielle Merten
The Community Emergency Response Team- also known as CERT- is a group of young individuals that train to be prepared for emergencies in and outside of school grounds, and helps them assist others who could be hurt if a disaster were to occur. With about twenty-four hours of training within two days, learning these skills may give students a taste of future careers they might want to pursue.“CERT teaches you how to respond to an emergency, because if you don’t know how to react to a situation, you could become the victim,” says Mrs. Chatwin during an interview. “Knowledge is power.”
Two students learn how to put out a fire safely.
The teacher continues with another follow-up: “There's also a psychological aspect to disasters—if you know how to react, then we can also know how to empathize with somebody that's going through trauma. We learn different medical procedures that can save a life until the paramedics show up. We do basic search and rescue as well— if there's a path of destruction from serious weather, it may be awhile before help gets to us. If there was a fire at school, our CERT team members would be able to help instead of one sole teacher in the classroom.”
The specifics of the course are as follows: “We usually have about thirty to thirty-five students per course, and we have two courses per year,” Mrs. Chatwin clarifies. “One in the fall, one in the spring.”
In response to being asked if CERT should be mandatory, Chatwin says no. “If that were the case, many students would lose interest- and some might not be able to handle it. I do think everybody could benefit, but there are some students who don’t even take CPR seriously. You have to have the maturity to sit and focus for long periods of time. That’s why I think CERT should always be voluntary.”
“How do they handle stressful situations?” “Oh, very well,” she says. “They’re always very engaged; they work perfectly as a team to get it done. They always do a great job, and becoming a team and working together to help people who are hurt is a major strength. The CERT motto is, ‘The greatest good for the greatest number of people in the shortest amount of time.’ Never attempt actions that put you at risk!”
Melody Carney, Kelli Casteel, and a helpful firefighter.
It’s not been decided exactly when the spring CERT will take place- but it will be somewhere between February and March. Keep your eyes peeled for updates if you’re wanting to
participate!