New Team Of Emergency Volunteers Finish Training In West Hartford

Town of West Hartford

WEST HARTFORD, CT — Should disaster strike, there's a new group of people ready to aid the public if called upon.

But, of course, the newest members of West Hartford's Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) hope their services are not needed anytime soon.

The latest CERT graduating class, comprised of 17 members, just completed training on Tuesday, May 2.

This is the fifth training class since West Hartford CERT was reconstituted in March 2021 and the team now has 177 members.

The 24-hour Basic CERT Training includes: disaster medical operations; disaster preparedness; fire safety; light search-and-rescue; and active shooter training.

The course is a mix of classroom and hands-on training.

West Hartford CERT is a group of local volunteers who work with the West Hartford Office of Emergency Management.

Team members receive specialized training to enhance their ability to recognize, respond to and recover from a major emergency or disaster situation.

If needed, the team can also be mobilized to assist at local emergency shelters during extreme weather.

The next CERT training class will be held in the fall.

The team is open to any resident, student or person who lives or works in West Hartford and is at least 18 years old.

Anyone interested in learning more information about the team or would like to join, should visit the CERT webpage: https://www.westhartfordct.gov/CERT.