CERT HISTORY

Why CERT?

As many as 100,000 people were killed in the 1985 Mexico City earthquake
- 700 saved by untrained volunteers
- 100 volunteers died trying to help
City of Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD) recognized that citizens are likely to be on their own during early stages of disaster
FEMA adopted/expanded into a national program
All 50 States, 3 Territories and numerous foreign countries have adopted CERT

Washoe County CERT History

2002: CERT program implemented by Assistant Sheriff Jim Lopey
2005: Areas of responsibility established and Area Coordinators appointed
2005: Volunteer training assumed by WCSO volunteers
2008: Emergency supply staging areas established
2019: Over 1,000 volunteers trained via CERT Academy. For more information, click HERE

Washoe County CERT Mission

The Washoe County Community Emergency Response Team (CERT), sponsored by the Washoe County Sheriff’s Office, is dedicated to learning about and training for possible emergency situations that may occur in our homes, neighborhoods or work spaces. We aim to be a force-multiplier for first responders, enhancing their efforts during the earliest stages of an event, allowing them to move forward quickly.

We are here to serve our families and communities and increase community resilience in the event of various disasters, providing basic first aid in the event of earthquakes, fire, floods, explosions or common accidents, to bridge the time lapse before first responders can arrive on scene.

We work in trained teams to maintain calm and order while checking victims for breathing obstruction, shock or excessive bleeding and to direct others away from dangerous areas, while maintaining personal safety.

We support common community events, providing traffic and crowd control when needed, in order to become familiar with those who may someday be in need of the services we provide.