North County CERT offers free disaster preparedness classes

FALLBROOK – The citizens of Bonsall, DeLuz, Fallbrook and Rainbow have an opportunity to take free classes in disaster preparedness, Jan. 11 and 18. The community can learn how to be prepared for any type of disaster, whether natural or man-made, such as fire, earthquake or terrorist attack.

These free classes are offered as a two-Saturday session starting with classroom instruction and concluding in a disaster simulation drill on the final Saturday. Classes will be held at North County Fire Protection District’s Scout Hut at 231 E. Hawthorne in Fallbrook from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., Jan. 11 and 18.

Students will be taught wildfire prevention, basic first aid, light search and rescue, fire suppression, how to put together a go-bag, assess and triage the wounded, lift or “crib” heavy objects off people and learn about the psychological impact of disasters as well as other vital training.

Community members 16 or older who are interested in attending the classes should contact Linda at (760) 330-7979.

The North County Community Emergency Response Team will teach these classes, which are sponsored by North County Fire Protection District and provided through grants from the San Diego County Board of Supervisors, Fallbrook Regional Health District and San Diego Gas and Electric.

North County CERT public information officer Mike Crain said that, “CERT training is an easy way to help understand what to do right after a disaster whether large scale or local. You can meet the amazing volunteer neighbors that have gone through the training and have peace of mind knowing you are prepared when you might need to be. It is truly an amazing organization.”

North County CERT has trained 632 volunteers in the community and those who have taken CERT are eligible to attend monthly potluck meetings with interesting speakers and ongoing training available to the volunteers.

Submitted by North County Community Emergency Response Team.