CITRUS
Standard Operating Procedures
Effective Date:
Proposed changes to this policy should be brought to the attention of the
Citrus County CERT Action Committee
Mission:
To prepare Citrus County citizens to protect themselves, their families, their
homes, and their communities in the event of a natural or man-made disaster.
Scope:
CERT members are citizens who are trained to respond to emergencies
and or disasters that impact their homes, neighborhoods, schools, and property.
The program focuses on providing specialized training to organize teams to
provide vital services and information within their communities, in the absence
of emergency responders whose arrival may be delayed for hours or days due to
the magnitude of the disaster. The CERT program is sponsored by the
Citrus County Sheriff’s Office, Emergency Management Section and is an official
Federal Emergency Management Agency (F.E.M.A.) program. The philosophy of
Citrus County CERT is: “The greatest good for the greatest number of
people”.
Purpose:
To define procedures for the activation, notification, coordination,
capabilities and responsibilities of Citrus County Community Emergency Response
Team (CERT) members.
General Instructions:
The Citrus County CERT program emphasizes a neighbor helping neighbor
approach with training and program maintenance directed through the Citrus
County Sheriff’s Office, Emergency Management Section.
CERT members can be deployed for any type of major incident to include
but not be limited to:
1. Natural disasters
2. Technological hazards
3. Man-made or terrorist incidents
A. Activation
Self Activation: Neighbor helping neighbor
Community Activation: Provide support to emergency response agencies as
needed.
1. In the event the emergency services within the communities are overwhelmed, CERT
teams are designed to take immediate action and provide care and support
throughout their immediate area. Members of CERT are trained to
self-activate in their neighborhoods/communities and work as a team while
conducting operations until emergency services crews can gain access to and
stabilize the situation.
2. CERT members are not emergency services personnel as defined by state
law and as such are not exempt from federal, state, and local laws when
responding to emergencies. Therefore, all CERT members must use due care
and diligence when responding or reporting, as directed, to emergencies.
3. CERT members should be advised of the nature of the emergency, the
number of CERT members needed, and the staging location for operations
when assisting emergency response agencies.
B. Notification
Members should be notified of developing situations in their
neighborhoods/communities that may require their services or activation.
Communication media may include but not be limited to:
1. Local CERT Team Activation
2. Radio Communications
A. AM/FM
B. Weather Band
C. Short Wave/Amateur Radio
3. Television Communications
4. Code Red
5. Notification from the
C. Coordination
1. Self activated CERT members must coordinate their efforts until
emergency response agencies arrive and provide direction and leadership.
2. Community activated CERT members should be directed by the emergency
response agencies whether on scene or through available communications. CERT
members are only authorized to respond to community emergencies as directed by
local emergency response agencies.
3. Activities of CERT members should be relayed frequently to the on
scene emergency response agencies.
4. In the event of a catastrophic disaster which results in the
temporary loss of communications, all available CERT members should
report to a rally point, as designated by emergency response agencies, and
await further instructions. In most communities, this would be the local fire
station.
D. Capabilities
1. CERT members are trained to perform the following operations.
A. Light search and rescue
B. Fire extinguishment on small or controllable fires
C. Basic triage of trauma victims
D. Establishing safe evacuation areas
E. In some circumstances emergency communications, including situation reports
2. CERT members are trained to assist local emergency response agencies
as directed.
E. Responsibilities
CERT members must comply with the requirements of CERT training,
as well as complying with all federal, state and local laws when functioning as
a CERT member. These requirements are established through the CERT curriculum
and the Citrus County Sheriff’s Office, Emergency Management Section and
include but are not limited to:
1. Completing a Citrus County CERT Application Form.
2. Complete an Informed Consent, Waiver and Release of Liability Agreement.
3. Satisfactory completion of an approved Citrus County CERT instruction
course.
4. Maintaining competencies by attending future CERT education
sessions/meetings.
5. Signing the Acknowledgment Form attached to the Citrus County CERT
Standard Operating Procedures.
6. CERT badges and T-shirts shall be worn only during the following functions:
Activation, CERT functions and activities, representing CERT at activities i.e.
Fair, Expos, and during a drill.
Citrus County CERT Standard Operating Procedures
Effective Date:
Acknowledgement Form
I hereby certify that I have read and fully understand the information
presented in the Citrus County Community Emergency Response Team (CERT)
program’s Standard Operating Procedures document. Further, I acknowledge that
in my decision to respond “at will” to emergency or disaster situations within
Citrus County, it is my duty to obey all federal, state, and local laws while
functioning as a CERT member.
Further, as a CERT member, I will always use due care whether I am self
activated in my local area or community activated. I will follow the directions
of the emergency response agencies and supervisors appointed over me. In the
event that I am without direction from the emergency response agencies or supervisors,
I will perform my duties including making decisions as to the necessity of
providing emergency services in a prudent and reasonable manner at all times.
______________________________________ ______________
Printed CERT member name
DATE
_____________________________________________________
Signature of CERT member