By Valerie Macon
When disaster strikes, most people think first of firefighters, police officers, and paramedics. But behind many emergency responses are trained volunteers working within the same organized command structure used by professional first responders. These volunteers are part of the Community Emergency Response Team (CERT), ordinary citizens trained not only to support emergency personnel, but also to respond when help may be delayed. In a recent conversation, Fuquay-Varina CERT officials James Wong, vice president and public information officer (PIO), and Rodney Warren, president and planning section chief, explained why CERT was formed, how the organization operates, and the important role volunteers play in emergency preparedness and community response.
Rodney shared a brief history of the CERT program and its mission. Founded in 1985 by the Los Angeles Fire Department, the program grew out of concerns that emergency responders could become overwhelmed during a major disaster. Survey data at the time revealed that if residents called 911 and help did not arrive for as long as three days, the result could be widespread casualties. In response, CERT was created to train ordinary citizens in essential emergency skills such as utility control, public safety, emergency management, and light search and rescue — preparing individuals, families, workplaces, and neighborhoods to care for themselves and others until professional responders could arrive. If you can’t get emergency services there fast enough, what can you as an individual do to help yourself and those around you?
By 1987, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) had recognized its potential. A few years later, the program was expanded nationwide. Today, CERT is a national program administered at the state level, with each state managing its teams a little differently. In North Carolina, CERT programs operate through North Carolina Emergency Management.
A team’s jurisdiction is determined by its sponsoring organization. Rodney and James serve under the jurisdiction of the Rotary Club in Fuquay-Varina, which gives them added flexibility because Rotary Clubs are in communities nationwide. Some CERT teams are homeowners’ association (HOA)-based, others are faith-based groups; and again, their jurisdiction is going to be the property of the HOA or the church or whatever the organizational sponsor is. Most CERT teams, however, are sponsored by local fire or police departments, meaning their service areas typically align with those agencies’ districts.
There is “blue sky” assistance for preplanned community events such as parades and marathons in which members might be requested to set up a first aid station. Support could expand to helping police departments with traffic control, pedestrian control, traffic management, barrier management, and even providing radios to team leaders of volunteer groups, making sure there is communication between volunteers.
Then there is “gray sky” assistance when there is some kind of disaster like a flood, earthquake, hurricane, or cyber incident. During emergency events, CERT often focuses on first aid triage, helping reduce the burden on emergency services in areas like Wake County, which operates a county-organized EMS system. Others, if their sponsor is the fire department, may help with “firefighter rehab,” supporting firefighters who are coming out of the fire so they can take off their gear, get a breather, get water, refill their tanks, and help them cool down.
During Hurricane Helene, hundreds of CERT volunteers assisted across the state, helping at shelters, fire stations, and police stations. CERT members worked at the state Emergency Operations Center in Raleigh. Some volunteers worked for 11 months of the Helene response. Some managed the front desk, doing check-ins and checkouts of agencies coming in and out of the state. Volunteers also supported the logistics section with meals; others augmented the 211 staff, answering phones of those trying to get information about loved ones.
What type of people volunteer for CERT? What does the average CERT volunteer look like? Although a certain percentage of volunteers are former police, fire, and emergency management, the bigger percentage are people who do not have that kind of background. Most are just people who are interested and have a heart to help others, especially strangers, and aren’t afraid to run toward the disaster.
Rodney adds, “The CERT program is designed for everybody, anyone who has a heart and passion to help others, which are a lot of people.” Fuquay-Varina has CERT members ranging from age 10 to over 70. In North Carolina, there is no minimum age, as long as the parents are there with them during the training.
Parents are encouraged to bring their children. James’ daughter is ten years old. He explains, “As I get older, something might happen to me. I’m glad my daughter knows how to do CPR. I’m glad my daughter knows how to do medical triage. I have these conversations with her all the time. . . if something happens at school, I tell her, do what the teachers say; but if it’s a big enough emergency — a tornado, for example — teachers and staff are going to be overwhelmed. My daughter is CERT trained, so she understands what to do during a disaster and how to do medical triage on her classmates, or even on a teacher.”
Both Rodney and James are CERT trainers. Recently, they led a CERT program for Cary High School, training several of the school’s cadets. Trainers complete additional coursework and “Train the Trainer” programs that prepare them to teach CERT skills within their communities across the state. Training in Fuquay-Varina is hosted at the Bob Barker Company twice a year, a winter and a summer session, where all training modules needed to do any of the basic activities that CERT assists in are taught. A volunteer must be at least basic qualified. This basic training is completed in one weekend, from Friday after work through Sunday evening.
After basic training, there is a wide variety of additional specialized training available, depending on how one would like to serve. For example, CPR, Automated External Defibrillator (AED), stopping the bleeding, and communications training. And, living in the shadow of Shearon Harris Nuclear Power Plant, in the unlikely event that something happens involving the plant, CERT members can be trained in radiological emergency preparedness, how to staff a shelter during that kind of event, as well as radiological decontamination.
When it comes to mobilizing volunteers, preparation and communication are key. CERT members are encouraged to keep a personal response kit that includes basic first aid supplies, communication tools, and other items they may need during an emergency or community event. Members receive guidance on the basics of what to include, but each person can tailor their kit based on the role they expect to fill. Many CERT activities, such as public events, are organized well in advance, so volunteers know their responsibilities ahead of time. That planning helps ensure everyone is informed and ready when it is time to respond.
In the end, CERT is about more than disaster response. It is about neighbors helping neighbors, ordinary people stepping forward when their communities need them most. Whether assisting at a local parade, staffing shelters during a hurricane, or simply teaching a child how to respond in an emergency, CERT volunteers help build stronger, more prepared communities long before disaster strikes.
