Good and ready for bad times

In the event of a tornado, such as the one last year that swept through Jackson, or a train wreck like the one that happened Tuesday in Yazoo City, Miss., it's good to know neighbors are willing to help. But it's even better when those neighbors are trained to respond.

Wednesday morning a group of 10 residents gathered at Southeast Missouri State University to take the first four hours of their 20-hour CERT training. The Community Emergency Response Team is a federally funded national effort that was developed in 1985 in Los Angeles to train communities to help meet emergency needs in the event of a natural or man-made disaster.

The CERT Alliance in Cape Girardeau County, which has been teaching emergency preparedness for 12 years, is made up of the Cape Girardeau Fire Department, American Red Cross and the Cape Girardeau County Health Department. The fire department, specifically Capt. Paul Breitenstein, takes the lead in training.

CERT is designed to prepare participants to help themselves, their families and neighbors in an emergency. When disaster strikes, people want to help, and in some instances they're the only source of help until trained responders arrive, Breitenstein said. If people don't know what they're doing, they can put themselves and those they want to help in danger.

"Isn't it better to know what is the right thing to do than say 'what do I do now?'" he said. "People don't always do the right thing, and they compound the problem."

Paper tower teams

Breitenstein and Ron McCubbard of the local office of the American Red Cross and community volunteer Jim Watkins demonstrated how team work and preparation are the foundation of a successful rescue effort. They had the participants divide into two groups, choose a leader, and build a free-standing tower together made of paper, duct tape and paper clips.

Only when their towers began to topple did they realize they needed more stability at the base, not just in their paper towers.

"You have to have some kind of base," McCubbard told them. "It's the same way with team building. If you don't have a base for your team, your team will fall over."

In the event of another tornado, earthquake, or even a bioterrorism attack, CERT-trained participants will know how to establish a team base and how to respond before and after trained responders arrive.

Wednesday's group was advised to prepare emergency kits for their homes, vehicles and businesses, then to take preparedness into their neighborhoods, keeping fresh in their minds what they're learning in the training sessions and teaching others how to be safe and effective in a crisis.

Chaffee resident Ruth Hanner, who works for Wal-Mart in Cape Girardeau, said she is concerned about living in a rural area where help in a disaster would be slow in coming. Two nurses from the Cape Girardeau County Health Department said they weren't prepared enough in emergency medicine, and wanted to be able to respond as neighbors and nurses.

Wednesday's session covered what to keep in an emergency preparedness home kit and how to maintain it. Watkins, a former educator, discussed the psychology of emergency preparedness: how to respond to people who are looking for lost loved ones, and how to recognize one's own feelings and know how to react in a stressful time.

Communicable diseases and sanitation procedures were also discussed. Participants were introduced to the backpacks they as CERT team members will equip and use. They were briefed on how to disconnect propane and natural gas connections and shut down electrical breaker or fuse boxes when necessary.

Future sessions feature hazardous materials, fire suppression, emergency medical treatment, search and rescue procedures, and the need to document their activity. The final session will make participants put their learning to use.

"I definitely recommend people take this," said Kathy Waggoner, a counselor with Community Counseling Center and a CERT trainee. "When disaster happens, everybody wants to help but they have no clue."

lredeffer@semissourian.com

335-6611, ext. 160