Carlsbad CA— City of Carlsbad residents interested in joining the Community Emergency Response Team can now sign up online. CERT volunteers provide emergency preparedness and response assistance to their neighbors and community. Volunteers receive 24 hours of free training including fire safety, disaster medical operations, and light search and rescue.
According to City of Carlsbad Emergency Preparedness Coordinator David Harrison, CERT volunteers played an important role in the response to the Poinsettia Fire in May 2014, performing a variety of support activities in the city’s Emergency Operations Center and at temporary evacuation points and shelters.
Interested volunteers must apply online at www.VolunteerinCarlsbad.net or by calling 760-434-2929 before the CERT orientation on Monday, Jan. 5, at 6:30 p.m. The orientation will be held at the City of Carlsbad Safety Training Center located at 5750 Orion St. Participants for the upcoming training session will be chosen from those present. Training for Carlsbad CERT volunteers will start Monday, Jan. 26, from 6:30 – 9 p.m., and run for eight weeks. Class size is limited to 25 volunteers. Team members must be Carlsbad residents and 18 years of age or older.
Carlsbad has trained 175 CERT volunteers to date, who are actively involved in neighborhood readiness, public outreach and participating in disaster drills. Carlsbad’s team is one of the many CERT teams assisting local government jurisdictions in preparing their residents for emergencies.