In the event of a major disaster, professional emergency services may be overwhelmed andunavailable for long periods of time. The widespread needs of the community will depend upon voluntary assistance. With this in mind, fire departments in Marin County have adopted a citizen training program called Community Emergency Response Training (CERT). CERT is designed to provide hands-on training to become self-sufficient for at least 72 hours following a disaster such as an earthquake, flood, or a wildland fire. The program is presented in a three-day format, which includes one three-hour session and two six-hour sessions with a one-hour break for lunch.  Information covered includes:Introduction/Emergency Preparedness, Light Search and Rescue, Disaster First Aid, Fire Prevention/Suppression, Weapons of Mass Destruction, and a Disaster Simulation.

Are you Ready for a Disaster?

The Bay Area recently commemorated the 100th anniversary of the disastrous 1906 San Francisco earthquake.  That same year, floods and landslides caused tens of millions of dollars of damage in the Ross Valley, stranding residents, and causing serious injuries and deaths in other parts of Marin.  Are you ready for a natural disaster?

GET SMART!

Disaster professionals used to say, "the most important thing we can do is be prepared to survive for 72 hours."  Now the discusion is minimum five days in our homes. This first line of defense, called “Shelter in Place,” will save the most lives. To help you prepare, the Disaster Preparedness Task Force is offering a two-hour course to teach you what to do before, during and after a regional disaster.

GET TRAINED!

That’s all it takes - two hours. You owe it to your family. You owe it to your neighbors. You owe it to your community. San Anselmo, Fairfax and Sleepy Hollow are looking to become the first communities in the nation to have 100% of our households certified and ready for a disaster.

GET READY!

OVER 500 OF YOUR NEIGHBORS HAVE COMPLETED THIS CLASS

www.getreadyrossvalley.org

www.getreadymarin.org

Get Ready Update

The Get Ready Marin Program began in 2007 and has now taught over 750 people in the Ross Valley Fire service area. ·In 2008, the total attendance was over 180 students in homes and other venues. The number of students has grown each year.  This program is a power point presentation that lasts approximately 1 to 2 hours, depending on the questions and discussions. ·The difference between this program and the CERT program is that there is no “hands on” training and it is only one evening. ·There is a booklet that is given to each student fortheir reference, along with various lists and information for them to bring back to their families to implement. ·Ross Valley has four volunteer instructors and Captain Craig Carroll to teach this course. The volunteer instructors are Tina Hunnenburg of San Anselmo, Chris MacDonald and Rita Lewis of Fairfax, and John Grey of Sleepy Hollow. ·They have donated their time and their homes to present this program. We thank them for their support. In 2008, there was an increase in the number of presentations given in private homes, where neighborhoods got together and began preparing themselves for disaster. ·We hope to continue this trend and have more people transition to the CERT training as well.