Looking for Volunteers
The Chicago Ridge Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) Program is intended to register, recruit, and train volunteers to assist in times of crisis. In an emergency, fire, police, and emergency medical personnel may be overwhelmed with a major crisis. Volunteers would assist first responder personnel to enhance response procedures and safeguard the neighborhood. CERT promotes a partnership between emergency management and response agencies and the people in the community that they serve.

The goal is to train members of the neighborhoods and workplaces in basic response skills. Then CERT teams are formed and maintained as part of the emergency response capability for their area.

CERT Training
The basic CERT training program is a 21-hour course, typically delivered one evening per week, over a seven-week period. Training sessions cover:

Unit 1: Disaster Preparedness Unit 2: Fire Safety Unit 3: Disaster Medical Operations—Part 1 Unit 4: Disaster Medical Operations—Part 2 Unit 5: Light Search and Rescue Operations Unit 6: CERT Organization Unit 7: Disaster Psychology Unit 8: Terrorism and CERT Unit 9: Course Review and Disaster Simulation