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September 6, 2009: Social Networking and CERT by Lisa K. Perry With the recent explosion of Facebook and Twitter, it seems CERT has come into the mainstream by joining in on the action.  A quick search on Twitter brings up hundreds of local CERT groups who have created accounts.  Facebook reveals similar results. Linked-In also has many professionals who are part of CERT's throughout the country who have come together to discuss what is going on in their groups, allowing us to answer questions posed.  It's awesome to share with those who have the same passion.  Why social networking?  Why now?

CERT's need to have as many opportunities to get our basic message out to the people, but, we also need to be able to contact our own in a rapid manner.  Both sites are able to do this.  Granted, we attract a type of people who want to be out there responding to disasters.  But, as we know, CERT is so much more!  The beauty of social networking is we can get our message out to the masses almost instantaneously. 

Lealman CERT has a facebook page.  It is not an official page of the Fire District - it is created and maintained by CERT members.  We also have a fun "CERT members addicted to Facebook" page too.  We also have a Twitter Account at LealmanCERT.

Why now?  Because we at Lealman CERT want to be the premier CERT group in Florida.  We're well on our way to that status with what we've already done through conferences and trainings and individuals going on for further training.  But, we want to do more and do it better.  Through both Facebook and Twitter we can let thousands know in an instant what is going on with our group.  For that reason alone, I think it's a great reason for us to be actively involved in the Social Networking phenomenon.  And through Linked-In, we're letting the pros know that we're for real. Come join the fun!

August 18, 2009: CERT Newsletter – Volume 2 – Issue 2, August 2009 In this issue of the CERT newsletter, Volume 2, Issue 2, you will read about the Hamden, CONN CERT training on public safety officer rehabilitation and on-scene victim care. Another story "CERT Programs: Rural and Urban" describes the similarities CERT members receive in both locations and also the challenges both communities are faced with. The article on Teen CERT is a compilation of five individuals from across the country who conduct Teen CERT in their local communities. Click here to read the newsletter.

August 8, 2009: Follow the National Conference on Community Preparedness via Twitter. Unable to attend the National Conference on Community Preparedness in Arlington, VA next week?  Get the latest updates by following along via the Citizen Corps Twitter account: @citizen_corps Beginning on August 10th through August 13th, we will send out tweets to update you on what is happening at the National Conference, including quotes from guest speakers, announcements of the National Citizen Corps Achievement Award winners, and much more.  Join us! Go to http://twitter.com/citizen_corps to sign up.

August 4, 2009: The Department of Homeland Security's Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Administrator Craig Fugate today released a Web video message highlighting the need for the public to be prepared for any emergency. "Our entire emergency management team has a role to play when it comes to preparing for and responding to the next disaster," said Administrator Fugate.  "One of the most important parts of that team is the public.  The more prepared the public is now, by getting an emergency response kit, making an emergency action plan, and getting a skill, like CPR, the stronger our emergency response team will be." The Administrator's video can be found on FEMA's Multimedia Website www.fema.gov/medialibrary. 

August 3, 2009: Home Safety Council offers Safety Saturday Webinar on Wed, Aug 5 The Home Safety Council wants to help you make the most of Fire Safety Month in your community this October. So they have partnered with Lowe's to provide fire and life safety educators with a premier local educational event. Safety Saturday is a free public event that will be held in the parking lot of Lowe's stores on Saturday, September 26, 2009. Across the country, participating Lowe's stores will be teaming up with their fire safety and other community safety neighbors for this one-day event. It's designed to provide educational fun for the entire family. Join the Safety Saturday Webinar on August 5th to learn how you can get involved. Click here to register to participate in the Safety Saturday Webinar.

July 30, 2009: Tell Your Story! United We Serve to Promote Safety and Security Activities Last month, As a lead in to September as National Preparedness Month, United We Serve will promote the week of August 24-30 as “Safety and Security Week” and will send out national press releases and prominently feature stories focused on volunteerism in the arenas of disaster preparedness and recovery. If your organization has volunteer activities occurring the week of August 24th to 30th that relate to “Safety and Security,” please reach out to Fred Wong, Outreach Coordinator for United We Serve at the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) at fwong@cns.gov, to share your story. For more information, go to http://www.citizencorps.gov/news/press/2009/UWS_SafetySecurityWeek.shtm

July 17, 2009: Animals and Disaster American Veterinary Medical Association. Emergency Preparedness and Response. AVMA, April 2009 Revision, 423 pages. At: http://www.avma.org/disaster/emerg_prep_resp_guide.pdf

July 17, 2009: FEMA Administrator on Mitigation at Annual Natural Hazards Workshop McKay, Jim. “FEMA’s Craig Fugate Says Mitigation Language, Roles Must Be Redefined.” Government Technology July 16, 2009. At: http://www.govtech.com/gt/articles/702376

July 17, 2009: Hazardous Materials Training Material U.S. Department of Transportation, Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration. What You Should Know: A Guide to Developing a Hazardous Materials Training Program. Washington , DC : PHMSA, Accessed at: July 15, 2009, 31 pages. Accessed at: http://www.phmsa.dot.gov/staticfiles/PHMSA/DownloadableFiles/Developing_HMT_Program_Guide.pdf

July 17, 2009: Hurricane Evacuation Kunzelman, Michael. “Economy Means More Help Needed to Flee Hurricanes.” Associated Press, July 16, 2009. Accessed at: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2009484451_apushurricaneseasoneconomy.html

July 17, 2009: Hurricane Protection Program National Research Council. Final Report from the NRC Committee on the Review of the Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration (LACPR) Program (Pre-Publication Copy). Washington , DC : The National Academies Press, 2009. Accessed at: http://www.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=12708 [Click on “Full Text]

July 17, 2009: Personal Disaster Preparedness Federal Emergency Management Agency. Personal Preparedness In America : Findings From the Citizen Corps National Survey. Washington , DC : June 2009, 90 pages. Accessed at: http://www.citizencorps.gov/pdf/Personal_Preparedness_In_America-Citizen_Corps_National_Survey.pdf

July 17, 2009: Public Health Emergency Preparedness Grants (CDC) Federal Grants Wire. “Public Health Emergency Preparedness (93.069).” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, HHS. http://www.federalgrantswire.com/public-health-emergency-preparedness.html

July 16, 2009: Plug for the State's Disaster Reservist Program I think that when a volunteer decides to volunteer for response...that (s)he will always be called up and put into a role that they will be be trained for and can do. While ideal, unfortunately, that may not always happen with large organizations. Typically, it's a hurry up (be on stand-by and accessible) and wait. And sometimes you don't get a call or the volunteer gets asked to do something not what (s)he expects. That's very frustrating...but when affiliating with large organizations, it is typical. And those who have spent much time working disasters understand there are lots of frustrations and a bit of hardship for the momentary gratification. If you are somewhat tolerant to the hurry up and wait frustrations and can give a few weeks of your time, at a spurt, the State of Florida Disaster Reservist Program is worth considering. The primary function of the Reservist is to work "Community Relations", getting information out to disaster survivors and often being the eyes and ears to provide information back to government with a street-by-street 'boots-on-the-ground' assessment...adding the human touch to all the other tools management has to help ground relief and recovery decisions. The Reservist is a paid temporary position, so there is some bureaucracy (paperwork) involved with the application process. So if you think that you want to participate, you must start the paperwork before the storm is brewing in the Carribean. A Reservist will come in contact with others from different response and recovery organizations, (FEMA, American Red Cross, faith-based relief organizations) and I think that the working relationships that are established result in learning a great deal. You can also count on running into many other CERT grads. For more information, go to the State Emergency Management website:http://www.floridadisaster.org/Recovery/HumanServices/DisasterReservist/Index.htm

July 10, 2009 - Congrats to the "finalists" of 2009 Natioal Citizen Corps Award Winners from Florida in the following categories: Preparing Community Organizations Award: Duval County / Jacksonville Citizen Corps (FL) Preparing the Public Award Escambia County Citizen Corps Council (FL) Outstanding Citizen Corps Council Award (Serving a population over 1.5 million Southeast Florida Regional Citizen Corps Task Force * Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach Counties A list of all finalists is at: http://www.citizencorps.gov/news/awards/ The award winners in each category will be announced at the 2009 National Conference on Community Preparedness (NCCP) on August 11th, 2009, in Arlington. Posted by: Bill Firestone Fri Jul 10, 2009 4:49 pm (PDT).

July 2, 2009 - Statement from FEMA Administrator Fugate on Preparedness as We Approach Independence Day Weekend "As we take this opportunity to observe the July 4th holiday with loved ones and friends, we are reminded of all we have to be thankful for and why it is so critical that we do all we can to protect our families and communities. I encourage all Americans to take a few simple steps to ensure that if and when your community is impacted by an emergency or disaster, you are prepared. Click here to read more.

June 24, 2009 - Lealman CERT Activated after midnight storms Early this morning at the request of the on-scene incident commander, Lealman CERT was activate utilizing the new phonetree system to conduct damage assessment at the Southernaire Mobile Home Park. The storm last evening caused considerable damage in this park. The phonetree worked great as it made close to 90 calls in less than seven minutes. Ten CERT members responded and were on scene working in less than one hour. (The first seven arrived in less than 30 minutes!) In providing an update to Pinellas County Emergency Management this morning, Director Sally Bishop replied, "VERY impressive - Way to go CERT members!" Overall, the CERT members inspected 169 units and reported 11 "Affected homes", 1 "Minor Damaged home" and 5 "Major Damaged homes". All done within 90 minutes of the first call. I was proud of our CERT members; they did a great job. The members who responded were: Shawn Kelly, Vivian Campbell, Weldon & Robert Burgett, John C. Green, Jr., Victor Floener, Cliff Smith, Dawn Acheson, Craig Dorman and Joe Aiello.

June 21, 2009  -  Goforth Leadership Award The Florida CERT Association has established the James T. Goforth Leadership Award in honor of Tom Goforth who, prior to his untimely death, was a member of the Association Board of Directors representing area 3. Tom worked diligently furthering the activities of the Association and was instrumental in securing the cooperation of the Florida Elk’s Youth Camp as a location to host the annual conference. The award is to be presented at the Florida CERT Association annual membership meeting and election of officers at the conclusion of the annual conference.

April 30, 2009 - Navarre CERT Newsletter (Click here to read)

February 28, 2009  -  Getting Prepared! Author Carl Amato is presently a CERT team leader in Hernando County (FL). Click here to read his article from Sizeup titled "Getting Prepared".