Sachse’s Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) continues to give back to the community by educating residents about what to do in a disaster.

This year’s basic training course will be held Saturday, April 2, and Saturday, April 9, at the Public Safety Building, located at 3815-D Sachse Road. In order to complete the course, interested residents must attend both sessions.

Both classes will begin at 8 a.m. and run through 6 p.m. The cost to attend both courses is $25 and that covers lunch for both Saturdays along with the necessary equipment and educational materials provided. Sachse CERT is also offering a couple’s discount, $40, to take the class.

Residents must be at least 18 to participate in the course or 16 with parental consent.

CERT helps teach residents about disaster preparedness and helps them respond to a major emergency or natural disaster that affects their community, such as the 2019 tornado in Sachse.

This year’s class is broken into two parts over the two Saturdays and nine sections: disaster preparedness, fire safety, disaster medical operations parts one and two, light search and rescue operations, CERT organization, disaster psychology, terrorism and CERT, and a course review and disaster simulation. Once residents complete the course, they will receive a G-317 certificate, which is issued through FEMA and recognized by every state.

After residents finish the classroom instruction and the practical drills, they will take part in a final simulated drill during the April 9 class. Once they pass the drill, they can volunteer as a Sachse CERT responder, but it is not necessary.

For the full story, see the March 24 issue.