1. A first step as you organize your neighborhood is to
divide up your neighborhood into blocks.
Use an overhead map that you may download and print. Make
sure it is the simplest map available, showing property boundaries and roads
only. Check on Google or with your city GIS specialist.
2. Divide your neighborhood up in blocks of 6-10 homes that are
next to or across the street from each other. Number the blocks.
3. Now comes the fun part, pick up the phone and begin
calling a person or a couple from each of those blocks, inviting them
to be the Block Captain for their block and joining the Block Captain Team of
your Precinct.
4. Assign them their Block Captain #, generate a Precinct
Team Contact List: include your Precinct # (applies on a City
Map), CERTS, Block Captain #, Name, Phone #, E-mail, # Homes of each BC. Then,
distribute this list to your Block Captain/ CERT Team.
5. You will want to begin holding regular communication drills to
learn and practice your communication skills. (weekly drills work real well at first to establish the skill and familiarity with the equipment)
Make a call - in chart of your Block
Captains and CERTS contact info.
6. You must have a Communication Specialist (Comms), who will run
your communication drills. So the next step is to recruit someone
in your neighborhood/precinct to become the Precinct Comms. ( A
registered HAM operator is perfect, or someone who is willing to learn, teach
and run your weekly communication drills).
7. You, the Precinct Leader and the Precinct Comms are a
team. You will work together to dispatch CERTS, emergency supplies and
organize people in an emergency. You will benefit by becoming CERT
Trained to assist you in this responsibility.
8. Plan a date and time with your Precinct Comms, to
practice communication drills with your Block Captains and CERTS to
practice and sharpen your communication skills on your walkie talkies. Inform
all your Block Captains and CERTS the time, day and channel these weekly drills
will be on. Be consistent, don't give up. Every week counts for
those who check-in. Practice, Practice, Practice, even if you miss
occasionally, you will benefit by holding your drills.
9. All Block Captains and CERTS invest in their own Walkie
Talkies. This way everyone buys in and is truly committed. Paying a
price has a way of pushing us to get our $'s worth. Developing
skills are an amazing investment in self.
10. You will want to hold Block Captain Training meetings.
Quarterly works well. Use this website to encourage basic family
preparation, food and water storage and use, Grab 'n Go Kits, Sanitation
Kits, Sanitation Procedures, 72 Second Kits, Laundry Kits, Car
Kits, School Kits, alternative heat, light and cooking supplies, alternative
cooking skills etc. Security of Home, Sheltering in Place, Alternative
Sheltering, Cold Weather Clothing, Use of Emergency Ribbons, How to use walkie talkies, Teach
them to all be self-reliant and to learn and live self-sustaining principles.
11. Prepare and secure your own home in all ways.
12. Encourage your Block Captains to share what has been learned
with their own block of neighbors (and beyond).
13. Create your own Neighborhood Emergency Plan. Include:
- The
physical site of your Neighborhood Command Post
- Shelter,
water and food for your CERT Teams so they can rest
- Medical
staging area for triage and treatment area
- Morgue
- Nursery
- Pet
area (in your neighborhood, in case of home structure damage)
- Pre-assign
Team Leaders for set up
- The
Precinct Leader will oversee their neighborhood plan (as per CERT
Training)
- Comms
responsible for all communication coming in and going out of Precinct,
from BC and CERTS to District Comms. Will receive info from District
Comms from outside the Precinct in. Will pass info to Precinct
Leader.
- Develop
and share the Neighborhood Emergency Plan with your Precinct
(neighborhood)
- Practice
Emergency Drills with Block Captains and CERTS first, add
pre-assigned team leaders
- Create
your own Neighborhood Emergency Cache (trailer) of Emergency Supplies
- Surround
yourself with people of integrity, work together
14. Work consistently, by doing small and simple things weekly
or do a project together and then take a break knowing you are planning another
part of your project. Remember that you
create great things to happen when you are consistent and committed.
The amazing sense of community
and caring for one another strengthens all of us. Friendly, strong
relationships are the foundation for a successful and amazing life.
Look for people who want to help and who have the desire to be of service in their
community. Those kind of people are an amazing value to your
neighborhood. People with heart do take their responsibilities very seriously.
Also, you get to know your neighbors. Relationships are the foundation of
working together. Working together
motivates people to do their best. We
are beings who love to serve our fellowmen.
You will have the opportunity to guide your neighborhood and to become an
effective and prepared team, as you gain knowledge, skills and confidence to
deal with many challenges that may come your way.
With courage, practice, and by getting
to know one another, confidence will grow with knowledge and skills gained. You
must all work together as a team. That means everyone learns what their
job is and does it. We get better with
practice.
Remember.......in an emergency or large scale disaster, you and your neighbors
may be on your own for at least 24 hours to a week and in some instances, maybe
longer. Prepare accordingly and work together as a team to take
care of your own family’s needs, encourage your neighbors to take care of their
own needs and work on your neighborhood's emergency needs.
That means preparation, relationship building, skill building, gathering
supplies and practice of working together.
In Cottonwood Heights, we meet quarterly as Precincts for training. We know people are busy, so a
quarterly meeting is reasonable.
CERT Training is encouraged, HAM Radio training is also encouraged as
channels on walkie talkies may be jammed. So realize you may need to have
a team of younger people or athletes that will act as messengers to deliver
emergency supplies to your CERT Search and Rescue Teams.
First Aid, CPR Training is also encouraged.
We are here to support you as you organize your neighborhood with tools, lists,
documents, links, rosters, comms radio check in script, etc.
Check back to hook up to classes,
CERT, HAM Radio Training, FIRST Aid being held in the area.
Believe in you!!!
Your neighborhood will become better prepared and will get to know one another
as friends and can create a great team, so that if and when that emergency
happens, you know what to do, what not to do, who to contact, how to get
your information out and back, you will know your surrounding Precinct friends
that you may need to call on or for your team to help.
In a Nut Shell..........
Know your Precinct Team..... Precinct Comms, Block Captains
Create your Precinct Emergency Plan, and practice it, learn from it and adjust
it when necessary.
Hold quarterly meetings with your Block Captains and CERTS, include, family
preparedness, trainings, planning drills and other pertinent information, etc.
Keep in touch with your team. Encourage Block Captains to share info with their
neighbors, cover training on emergency ribbons and practice with your
team and neighbors.
Remember.......in an emergency
1. Take Care of your own household first, make sure your own family is safe
2. Plan to set up the command post with your Precinct Comms to dispatch CERTS
after they have cleared their own homes as safe.
3. Send Team
Leaders to set up their areas after they have checked in at the Command Post
4. Organize non-CERT volunteers appropriately
5. Be prepared to turn over all responsibility to the City First Responders
when they arrive
6. Know that what you
do matters in a very real way to real people
7. You can do great
things a small bite at a time
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