A Grim Reminder of The Need For CERT Training

Last week, I drove down south with a minivan full of my daughter's belongings that she will need when she moves into her new apartment next month. Cassidy, soon to be a sophomore, attends college in Auburn, Alabama, which is about six hundred miles from our home in Manchester. 

Armed with a cooler full of water, some beef jerky and a book on cd that I checked out from the library, I began my journey.  It's a nice drive, with lots of big beautiful trees, rolling hills and good highways.  I wasn't on a schedule, and truth be told, I was looking forward to some much needed quality time with myself. And quality time I had, starting with a detour from St. Louis to Russellville, Arkansas to spend an evening with my friend Lisa before I headed even further south. 

Following a wonderful girls' night in, I hit the road the next morning expecting an uneventful 8 hour drive to my next destination, Pelham, Alabama, just south of Birmingham.  And it was indeed uneventful until  I saw something so devastating it's hard to describe.

I had forgotten about the tornadoes that hit Birmingham, Tuscaloosa and towns in between.  There's been so much in the news lately about Joplin that it had slipped my mind that folks in Alabama had been so hard hit.  I drove by an area that had once been a neighborhood.  It was easily a four by four block area and it was all leveled.  GONE. 

In one horrific instant, houses were flattened, and looking at the damage, my gut tells me people lost their lives.  And I'm sure that others survived, but were injured, and/or trapped.  And that was just one neighborhood.  I had forgotten that in late April, 2011, more than 300 people in seven states perished during the second deadliest twister outbreak in U.S. history. 

And I wondered what it was like in that neighborhood, in those first few heartwrenching moments when those who had survived began to try to shake off the shock, look around and wonder what to do next.  I wondered if any of them had taken a Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) course, which teaches citizens how to cope in the event of a major disaster. 

I took a CERT course several years ago and learned how to help my family and my neighbors. The fact is, in an area of mass devastation we will all have to count on each other.  First responders will do their best but will be spread thin.  Manchester has close to 20,000 residents, and should a disaster occur, we will need to help each other survive. And that's where CERT training can be the difference between life and death. You will learn light search and rescue, basic first aid, fire suppression, diaster preparedness and so much more information that you can use to help your family and your neighbors in the event of a community-wide emergency.

I always refer to Manchester as a little town in the midst of a big city.  Everywhere I go around town, I see my fellow residents and neighbors.  I can't imagine how horrific it would be to have our "little town" devastated, but it comforts me a bit to know that I am prepared to help should the need arise. 

I urge you to sign up now for CERT. The City of Manchester's next CERT course will run for eight consecutive Tuesday evenings beginning Aug. 23.  Training will be provided by SEMA certified police officers and fire fighters.  Everyone is welcome and there is no charge for the program. 

Applications are available at the front desk of the or on the city's website at www.manchestermo.gov (in the document/form center).  For further information about Manchester's CERT program, please contact Officer David Ebert at 636-227-1410, ext. 396.