Somerset County CERT Program Graduates 11 Residents After Emergency Training

SOMERSET COUNTY, NJ — Somerset County's Office of Emergency Management has graduated 11 residents from its Community Emergency Response Team Basic Training Program.

The residents trained at the Emergency Services Training Academy in Hillsborough and learned disaster preparedness, CERT organization, light search and rescue, disaster psychology, terrorism, fire safety, medical operations, sheltering operations and Stop the Bleed.

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The county said the residents volunteered 30 hours in September and October for the training.

Following the course, each participant is required to complete a written exam and practical exercise to officially graduate.

Local CERT programs are designed to train and organize volunteers to help their families, neighbors, co-workers and other community members during emergencies when professional responders may not be immediately available, according to the release.

The county said CERT volunteers can help support local communities and first responders during emergencies and disasters, allowing professional responders to focus on more complex and essential tasks.

"I took the CERT course to be better prepared to help my family and my community in case of an emergency," said resident Mike Mahoney. "As a member of the Somerset County CERT team, I can free up first responders to handle the situations that they are highly trained for. The realistic and practical training experience gives me confidence in responding to an actual emergency."

Kayla Pipas Keller, deputy director of Somerset County's Office of Emergency Management, said the training helps residents prepare for situations where emergency crews may be stretched thin.

"The CERT Basic Course empowers residents with skills to become more prepared to handle incidents on their own and support their neighbors during the process while first responders may be delayed due to high call volumes during emergency incidents," said Kayla Pipas Keller, Deputy Director of Somerset County's Office of Emergency Management.

She also said the county wants to continue building its volunteer ranks.

"Somerset County's Office of Emergency Management supports this course as well as our office's County Emergency Response Team (CERT). With having over 50 active members on our team, we hope to continue to be able to teach more residents as well as add more volunteers onto our teams as well as the municipal teams which are utilized throughout the county for both incidents as well as planned events," said Keller.

Residents interested in other training opportunities through the Emergency Services Training Academy can find more information on Somerset County's website at somersetcountynj.gov/government/public-health-safety/emergency-services-training-academy.

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