Saratoga News
News
City program will assemble emergency response teams
By Shannon Burkey
Between earthquakes and wildfires, Saratoga is likely to face some sort of natural disaster in the future. But there are ways residents can better prepare themselves, their families and their communities when the "big one" hits.
Since 1993 the Federal Emergency Management Agency has been launching Community Emergency Response Team programs across the nation. And while almost every community in Santa Clara County has its own CERT program, Saratoga has long been without one.
But that is all about to change. On Oct. 26, about 30 Saratoga residents gathered at the community center to learn about the CERT program and how it will benefit the community, and to discuss what the Saratoga program will look like.
"The Saratoga CERT members will be in a position during a major disaster to ensure that their families and homes are safe, then provide assistance to their neighborhoods and communities as an organized, volunteer arm of the larger response system," said Jim Yoke, the Santa Clara County Fire Department emergency services coordinator who is overseeing the Saratoga CERT program.
Yoke was very happy with the turnout at the meeting and with the enthusiasm of the group.
"This group is very community-oriented and conscious of the big picture. They have the right ideas in their heads about what needs to be done and how to go about doing it," Yoke said.
The CERT program works by recruiting volunteers who are interested in becoming a key part of emergency response in their community in the event of a disaster. These volunteers are then trained in disaster preparedness, disaster fire suppression, basic disaster medical operations, light search and rescue, disaster psychology and team operations.
"Once they are trained, they should be able to form up in their neighborhoods and communities when a disaster strikes and address the needs of their communities," Yoke said. "That is where they become super valuable. As a community, we have to be able to take care of each other, and this is a great way to do that."
The initial meeting of the Saratoga CERT program was put together as a brainstorming session to discuss the basics of getting a program such as this one off the ground.
"The purpose of tonight is to start the process. I don't imagine we are going to come up with all the answers tonight," Yoke said. "We want to look at things like funding, fundamentals and the nitty-gritty of things like how we will communicate with each other before and after a disaster."
Rob Vance, vice president of the Saratoga Amateur Radio Association, attended the meeting and plans to become CERT-trained so that he can be useful in his community should a disaster strike.
"It's a disaster, and it's going to suck no matter what you do. The only way to be able to deal with it when it happens is to prepare," Vance said. "We can't sit back and pound the table because FEMA is not here yet. It's up to us."
Vance also believes his amateur radio skills and the skills of the nearly 300 other licensed amateur radio operators in Saratoga and Los Gatos will prove important in an emergency.
"A vital part of emergency preparedness is communication, whether it's by radio, TV or smoke signals," Vance said. "When infrastructure is destroyed, amateur radio is very self-deployable. A lot of non-emergency type traffic can be handled by amateur radio."
After the initial meeting, a core group of nine people stepped up to work with Yoke on creating the Saratoga program before training will begin in January.
"These people really want to make it work," Yoke said. "This is a team for the city of Saratoga that all of Saratoga can be proud of."
Training for the Saratoga CERT program is open to all those who are interested and will begin on Jan. 25 and 27 and run until March 10. For more information, contact Jim Yoke at sccfd_esc@yahoo.com.
