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HomeMy WebLinkAbout04/21/1998, 6 - COMMUNITY EMERGENCY RESPONSE TRAINING (CERT) REVIEW r y council Yd6gn•"4/22/98 j acEnaa Repout '�Nmb. CITY OF SAN LUIS OBISPO FROM: Robert F.Neumann,Fire Chief/ Prepared by: Rik Grencik, Acting Fire Captain Viv R.Dilts,Administrative Assistant SUBJECT: Community Emergency Response Training(CERT)Review CAO RECOMMENDATION Receive and File an Updated Report on CERT. DISCUSSION Background • On October 22, 1996, staff received conceptual approval allowing the Fire Chief to develop a neighborhood Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) Program within the City. The overall purpose of the program is two-fold. First, individual community members receive training in the basic skills of personal preparedness in the event of a disaster. Second, once the trainees have dealt with their personal concerns, they can assemble into teams. These teams assist other emergency needs within their neighborhoods and places of employment during the critical 48-hour to 72-hour period following a disaster. By having neighborhood teams assist in the vast majority of the low- to moderate-level emergencies that follow a disaster, the professional emergency crews can concentrate on the more severe emergencies that may affect our community. In doing so, these teams become an important component in the overall planning of emergency response within the community. This program has been developed by the Fire Department in conjunction with Cal Poly State University with significant assistance from other successful programs throughout the State. • On September 16, 1997, staff went back to Council. At that meeting Council authorized establishment of a special account with the Cal Poly Foundation to handle all financial aspects of the program. In addition, Council approved private enterprise program sponsorship. At the September 16th meeting Council requested a six-month update on the progress of the program. The following is what has transpired since that time. Current Situation Staff is pleased to report this program has been the most successful of its kind on the central coast. Both citizens and students alike have enthusiastically supported and responded to it. ! 1 Council Agenda Report—Community Emergency Response Training (CERT)Review Page 2 Program accomplishments include the following. • In all, six training sessions have been completed graduating approximately 190 students: 90 general public and City employees, and 100 individuals from Cal Poly. These students received information and manipulative training on such subjects as storing emergency supplies, shutting off utilities,organizational skills, and rescue techniques. Training is proactive and focuses on real-life skills. For example during the recent winter storms, information and practice on sandbagging was added to prepare students for flooding situations. • A Citizen Support Group (CSG)has been formed. This voluntary group is made up of dedicated citizens. Presently, local businessman Barry Karleskint is the chair. The group's goal is to bring disaster awareness to the public. To that end, CSG has been assisting in the development of informational brochures and establishment of a bi-monthly booth at San Luis Obispo Farmer's Market. • The Citizen Support Group (CSG)has submitted a grant application to P.G. &E for$2,500 to help with the cost of an enclosed trailer. This trailer would be used to store and transport essential equipment related to the training and public education aspects of the program. The outcome of the grant is still pending. • The program has received sponsorship from three local businesses --Pacific Home Do It Center(PHDIC),Mission Community Bank and Randy Steiger,who is a real estate broker associated with Patterson Realty. These sponsors have helped offset the costs of the class. In exchange for their finding,they are identified as sponsors in each class and their business logo is displayed on both the Thursday night banner and each CERT bag. The Do It Center has also expressed an interest in giving CERT graduates discounts on disaster-related products. • The combination of private sponsorship and university collaboration is very unique and has been noticed by the Federal Emergency Management Agency(FEMA). There is a possibility representatives from both agencies will be invited to speak to these issues at a Washington DC conference held in the fall of this year. Future Outlook Looking ahead, staff envisions the following for CERT's future. • An annual drill is being planned to help present and past graduates maintain their skill level. This drill will be manipulative and reiterate information taught in earlier sessions. The first annual drill is scheduled for the latter part of April. It should be noted this drill will be connected with The Earthquake Preparedness Week. Council Agenda Report—Community Emergency Response Training(CERT)Review Page 3 • A database is being created to link graduates from different classes, who live in the same neighborhood. This database will contain pertinent personal addresses and phone number information. Information would be strictly voluntary and only accessed by authorized personnel. • An important goal of CERT is the development and coordination of neighborhood teams (there is already strong involvement in the mobile home park communities). Prior to implementation of teams,protocols need to be developed. CERT team members need to know where they should meet(designated staging areas) and what their specific roles are in correlation with emergency service workers. It is anticipated the details of these logistics will be completed shortly. • We are presently doing three training sessions per year. As the need arises, this might be increased to four sessions. If this were to occur, additional funding would be needed to cover the additional expense. • Currently,class size is limited to the size of the Fire Department's training room. However, because of the demand for this program by local citizens, staff is contemplating enlarging class size. If class size was to be increased,present room accommodations would need to be reviewed In the development of the new Headquarters Fire Station, staff recognized this potential. The room is currently designed so that it could be expanded with a minimum of effort. • This program has been so successful within the City, two potential offshoots have developed. Other cities have expressed interest in developing a program of their own and we have been approached by members of private industry to present this program for a fee. At this time staff is considering these possibilities, but is concerned with the overall impacts to the program. FISCAL RVIPACT Costs for the program can now be accurately calculated at $65-70 per student. However, by deducting both the student's $30 material fee and the sponsorship funding, the real cost to the City is $17 per student. This is quite reasonable considering it pays for instructional, printing, promotional, and miscellaneous expenses of the session. Miscellaneous expenses include a student receiving their own CERT bag containing a hard hat, vest, gloves goggles, whistle and latex gloves. All expenses for this program are presently being paid from the current Fire Department Disaster Preparedness operating budget and sponsor support. However, if the program was to expand due to popular appeal, staff clearly understands additional resources would be needed. �-3