Weston has a new group of trained neighbors ready to help when a storm or other emergency hits. The City of Weston honored its newest Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) graduates at the September 28 City Commission meeting, and shared the news on October 5.
CERT is a program built by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The idea is simple. When a big disaster hits a whole area, firefighters and paramedics cannot reach everyone right away. Trained residents can step in and help until professional crews arrive.
Weston’s new class earned that role the hard way. Over four Thursday evenings, the group put in more than 30 hours of classroom work and hands-on practice. They studied disaster preparedness, fire safety and utility shut-offs, disaster medical care, light search and rescue, team organization and disaster psychology. They also practiced sizing up an emergency scene, spotting hazards and setting priorities as a team.
In real life, that could mean checking on a neighbor after a hurricane, putting out a small fire, stopping serious bleeding, organizing volunteers or passing reliable information to responding agencies. In South Florida, where hurricanes, flooding and long power outages can affect whole neighborhoods at once, those skills matter.
At the meeting, Fire Chief Todd Draizin thanked Assistant District Chief Gary Harrington and Program Manager Richelle Levy for leading the program. He also credited the City Commission and City Manager Don Decker for backing CERT and community preparedness. The night ended with certificates for each graduate.
The work does not stop at graduation. Weston CERT members meet once a month at Fire Station No. 81 to keep their skills sharp. Between emergencies, the team helps with projects like changing smoke alarm batteries for seniors and staffing parades and community events. There are more than 2,700 local CERT programs across the country and more than 175 active teams in Florida.
The training is run by the Broward Sheriff’s Office Division of Fire Rescue. To join the next class, call BSO Fire Rescue at 954-389-2090 or read the City’s announcement to learn more. You can also see photos from the graduation night in the City’s online album.
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