Free emergency preparedness class available for Western employees

Western Washington University is now offering emergency preparedness training to interested employees. The training is part of a Western’s new Community Emergency Response Teamprogram, which educates the campus community about disaster preparedness and trains them in basic disaster response skills. Completion of the CERT training allows volunteers to assist in giving critical support to others in the event of a campus disaster. Classes will cover instruction on fire suppression, first aid and triage, personal preparedness, light search and rescue and disaster psychology, among other topics.

All faculty, staff and others associated with Western are eligible to be a volunteer member of the university's CERT program. Training consists of a free, 21-hour class held on campus, after which graduates will be issued a personal CERT response backpack kit. Western employees have been granted time release from their normal duties to attend this training and associated exercises (Employees must obtain their supervisors’ approval prior to participation).

Multiple courses will be offered in the coming year, with the first session running Nov. 28 to Dec. 16. Classes will be held from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. Mondays and Wednesdays, with a final exercise on Friday, Dec 16. The deadline for registration is Nov. 25th. For more information or to sign up for a course, contact Western's Environmental Health and Safety at ehs@wwu.edu or (360) 650-3064.

The new CERT training program is a result of collaborative effort of Western, Whatcom Community College and Bellingham Technical College. In September 2010, a partnership of these three schools called the Resilient Bellingham Consortium was awarded a $512,000, two-year grant from the U.S. Department of Education. As part of this grant, Western plans to train and maintain a cadre of CERT volunteers that would be able to participate with the Whatcom County emergency responders.