Virginia Beach Community Emergency Response Team (VBCERT) Course Starts June 4
Six-week course educates citizens on disaster preparedness

Virginia Beach, Va. (May 21, 2018) — The City of Virginia Beach Office of Emergency Management will be hosting a FREE Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) course that starts Monday, June 4 and runs through Saturday, July 14. This six-week course (two days a week) educates citizens about disaster preparedness for hazards that may impact their area and trains them in basic disaster response skills such as fire safety and suppression, light search and rescue, team organization, disaster medical operations and disaster psychology.

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. People who go through CERT training have a better understanding of the potential threats to their home, workplace and community and can take the right steps to lessen the effects of these hazards on themselves, their homes or workplace. If a disaster happens that overwhelms local response capability, CERT members can apply the training learned in the classroom and during exercises to give critical support to their family, loved ones, neighbors or associates in their immediate area until help arrives. When help does arrive, VBCERT members provide useful information to responders and support their efforts, as directed, at the disaster site.

Additional information and registration can be found at VBCERT or by calling Cookie Ketchum at (757) 385-2914 or Douglas Duggan at (757) 416-8782.

Most classes except the Practical will be held at the Fire/EMS Training Center, 927 So. Birdneck Road, from 6 – 10 p.m. The Practical will be held on Saturday morning from 8 a.m. – 1 p.m. also at the Fire/EMS Training Center. The Fingerprinting/EOC night will be held at Precinct One (Building 11) and the Emergency Operations Center (Building 30).

June 2018 Class
• June 4, 2018 – Orientation
• June 6, 2018 – Disaster Preparedness
• June 11, 2018 – Weather & Team Organization
• June 13, 2018 – Disaster Medical Operations I
• June 18, 2018 – Fingerprinting, Eoc & Terrorism Awareness
• June 20, 2018 – Disaster Medical Operations Ii
• June 25, 2018 – CPR Certification
• June 27, 2018 – Fire Suppression & Hazardous Materials
• July 9, 2018 – Light Search And Rescue Operations
• July 11, 2018 – Disaster Psychology /Radio Training
• July 14, 2018 – Practical Evolution/Mock Disaster

All classes will be held at the Fire/EMS Training Center, 927 So. Birdneck Road, from 6 – 10 p.m. except the Practical which will be held on Saturday morning from 8 a.m. – 1 p.m. also at the Fire/EMS Training Center.