The City of Auburn Emergency Management Office recently added 14 new members to the area’s Community Emergency Response Team (CERT), bringing the total number of graduates in the local program to 160.
The 14 new members graduated from the area’s 10th CERT course. The class consisted of three hour classes every Tuesday for six weeks and two-to-four hour drills on Saturday mornings. The class started on Sept. 23 and ended Nov. 1 with a hands-on practical exercise inside the now closed Mel’s Lumber in Auburn.
Graduates included community members from Auburn, Bonney Lake, Puyallup and Tacoma.
Graduates of the class included: Kiersten Riley, Rebecca Adams, Kevin and Barbie Warren all of Puyallup; Riley Relfe of Tacoma: Ron Riley from Bonney Lake; and Frank Pratt, Rachel Chiavaras, Alicia Tomlan, Tai X, Kathy Kavan, Carla Ann Goudy, Aislinn and David Suelflow, all from Auburn.
CERT training is comprised of 24-plus hours of classroom education and hands-on practice in topics including disaster preparedness, emergency management, fire safety /suppression, disaster medical operations, light search and rescue, disaster communication, disaster psychology, and all-hazards identification and awareness.
Graduates have the opportunity to become registered emergency workers with their respective cities and the state, allowing them to aid in local and regional disasters. Graduates also have the opportunity to participate in local and regional continuing education activities.
