What is a Community Emergency Response Team and why should I care?

Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) programs not only educate volunteers about disaster preparedness for the hazards that may impact their area while training them in basic disaster response skills, such as fire safety, light search and rescue, team organization, and disaster medical operations, it's a great way to be a part of the teams of front line workers during times when your community may very well need you the most.  During an emergency, don't you want to know there is help on the way? You can be a part of the help.

Where can you find communities that offer the program?

Communities like Victoria and Fayette County offer volunteer opportunities like CERT training for their citizens as a way to help the community to be better prepared for emergencies like one of our most memorable disasters like Hurricane Harvey or our most recent emergency, the unexpected freeze in February. Fayette recently had ten graduates from their CERT training program. There is a list of Texas communities that offer CERT education, which includes Victoria County which you can read here.

Our very own Victoria Office of Emergency Management or OEM's mission statement is to build and maintain the framework upon which our community prepares for, responds to, and recovers from natural or man-made disasters or significant emergencies through the following services.

You can read more about Victoria County OEM here.

If you'd like more information on how you can be a part of CERT training, call Victoria OEM. 361-580-5770.

LOOK: The most expensive weather and climate disasters in recent decades

Stacker ranked the most expensive climate disasters by the billions since 1980 by the total cost of all damages, adjusted for inflation, based on 2021 data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The list starts with Hurricane Sally, which caused $7.3 billion in damages in 2020, and ends with a devastating 2005 hurricane that caused $170 billion in damage and killed at least 1,833 people. Keep reading to discover the 50 of the most expensive climate disasters in recent decades in the U.S.

 

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