On Saturday, Jan. 12, CERT (Community Emergency Response Team) training for 2008 began at the First Baptist Church in Lake Isabella. This was the first of three training sessions, each lasting from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The next training will be on Jan. 19, with the last session taking place on Jan. 26. There are eight instruction modules, which include Disaster Preparedness, Fire Suppression, Medical Aid Operations, Disaster Medical Operations, Light Search and Rescue, CERT Team Organization, Disaster Psychology, and Terrorism and CERT.
Tom Klein, CERT coordinator for the Kern River Valley area, said that each module stands alone, so that any community member still interested in joining CERT can come to the next training session and make up the missed modules at another time. After hands-on training, practice and testing, participants will gain their CERT certification. The training is free; however, if a participant wants to keep the CERT manual, a $20 donation is asked for to defray printing costs.
 Tom Klein (rear) watches Bill Sheffer extinguish a fire at the first in a three-part CERT training held Saturday at First Baptist Church of Lake Isabella. |
CERT caught on quickly and spread throughout the United States. In 1994, FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) took over coordination of the all-volunteer citizen group and made it a national program. After Sept. 11, 2001, the Office of Homeland Security took over FEMA and in 2003 made CERT part of the national Citizens Corps program, which also includes the Medical Reserve Corps, Neighborhood Watch and VIPS (Volunteers in Police Service).
Tom Klein, a resident of the Kern River Valley since 1978, got involved in CERT in 2003 when he and his brother-in-law took up residence in Los Angeles for seven weeks to take part in CERT training. This was right before the terrorism module was added.
Klein then took CERT instructor training and brought CERT to the Kern River Valley one year later in 2004. There are now about 70 CERT members with teams in Bodfish, Wofford Heights, Lake Isabella, Kernville, Weldon, Cap Canyon, and Walker Basin.
Klein is passionate about CERT and disaster preparedness. He says there aren’t yet enough CERT volunteers in the Kern River Valley. The Lake Isabella area has just three working fire trucks and only about 20 first responders for a community of nearly 20,000. If a large-scale disaster such as a major earthquake, flood or wildfire were to happen here, one or all three of the roads leading into our valley would most likely be damaged or closed.
Klein said Kern River Valley CERT is in desperate need of better radios and communication because the FRS (Family Radio Service) walkie-talkies that were used in last year’s disaster drill in May weren’t able to broadcast across the mountains or between far-apart communities like Cap Canyon and Lake Isabella.
Klein and his company, Klein Fire Protection, purchased and donated the 40 radios to CERT, but now he must buy antennas for all of them, which cost about 70 dollars each. Klein also said CERT needs a mobile 'repeater,' a large antenna used to bounce the radio signals from town to town, that will cost about $3,000. Klein’s hope is that local businesses will come forward with donations to help CERT raise the $7,000 needed for the antennas and repeater.
It’s all about saving lives, Klein said. CERT’s motto is 'The greatest good for the greatest number of people.' He mentioned the earthquake in Mexico City in 1985 that killed 10,000. Klein said that good Samaritans saved 800 lives, but 100 of those untrained volunteers died. With CERT training, that could be prevented.
For residents of the Kern River Valley, Klein said that the usual 3-day supply preparation wouldn’t be enough. Residents here should be prepared for 7 to 14 days without water, electricity or help. Klein has lived through the Borel fire, Bodfish fire and the Deer fire in 2003. He said it made him really sad to see elderly people unable to rebuild after they lost their homes and all their belongings.
'I love this valley. I love this community,' stated Klein. 'That’s why I’m behind CERT. I don’t want to see our community burn up.'
Just six people attended Saturday’s CERT training. Attendees came from varying backgrounds, including a registered nurse for the Kern County Department of Public Health. Klein said she would be very useful as a CERT member, if for some reason she could not respond to her workplace during an emergency. He said there is a huge need for medically trained people in CERT.
Elizabeth Ragazzo came all the way from Alta Sierra. 'We have nothing up there,' she said. 'We have a lot of elderly. I want to learn to save a life.' Kerry and Bill Sheffer of Bodfish said they have a lot of survival experience. Kerry works as a CNA in Bakersfield, and Bill works on a Forest Service road crew. 'We’ve both been out there in the wild by ourselves,' Ms. Sheffer said. Like Ragazzo, the Sheffers expressed a desire to help their community. 'I want to be involved,' she said.
During the Fire Suppression module, participants learned to put out a fire in the church parking lot. Klein set ablaze a metal drum filled with water and gasoline and each trainee learned to use the CERT buddy system to put out the flames. It was the first time most had used a fire extinguisher.
The training culminated with a demonstration on the various ways to move an injured person.
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