Community Emergency Response Team (CERT)

The North Dakota Department of Emergency Services (NDDES) administers the North Dakota Citizen Corps Council, Community Emergency Response Teams (CERT), and Teen CERT programs.  The mission of the North Dakota Citizen Corps Council is to promote readiness in every community.  It is well proven that CERT Teams are a response multiplier in times of disaster.

CERT educates people about disaster preparedness and provides basic disaster response training.  The 20-hour CERT course is taught in the local community by a trained team of first responders who have completed a CERT Train-the-Trainer course. CERT training includes disaster psychology, basic fire suppression, elementary disaster medical operations and light search and rescue.

Teen CERT

As a teen, there are probably a lot of things you’re told you can’t do. But there is one very important thing you can do: Learn to protect yourself, your family, and your friends in case of disaster. The Teen CERT program educates students about disaster preparedness for hazards that may impact their area and trains them in fundamental disaster response skills such as fire safety, light search and rescue, and disaster medical operations. Using the training learned in the classroom and during exercises, Teen CERT members can assist others in their schools, neighborhood or workplace following an event when professional responders are not immediately available to help.  Teen CERT members also are encouraged to support emergency response agencies by taking a more active role in emergency preparedness projects in their community.

Why Join?

Would you know what to do if an emergency struck your community or your school? After a disaster, professional responders will be needed everywhere. In the chaotic aftermath of an emergency, who could help until professional responders arrive? Who could be the first person on-scene to step up? The answer: You.

In most emergencies, a bystander, or even the victim, provides the first immediate assistance. Joining Teen CERT teaches you how to respond when others look to you for help.

What You’ll Do

We all have a role to play in keeping our communities safe—no matter where you live, no matter who you are, no matter how you participate. What role will you play? Once you complete your CERT training, you can participate in or lead a variety of activities.

During an emergency, your Teen CERT could: organize volunteers, assist in evacuations, give assistance to survivors, provide damage assessment information, provide shelter support, and assist with crowd control.

Teen CERTs can also help in their schools year-round. Your Teen CERT could: participate in disaster drills and exercises, present fire safety education, assist in preparedness outreach, provide peer mentoring, and address safety issues in the school.

What You’ll Learn

It takes about 20 hours to complete the CERT training. But the critical skills you learn will last your entire life. During the training, you will learn to: put out small fires, conduct light search and rescue, assist those who are injured, set up medical treatment areas, assist emergency responders, identify and anticipate hazards, reduce fire hazards in the home and workplace, and help reduce survivor stress.