The City of Southfield’s Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) recently won first place at the inaugural CERT Olympics held in Dearborn, Michigan. The competition involved six CERT teams from across metro Detroit who competed in various disaster exercises that included search and rescue, disaster operations and medical treatment.
The first place trophy, “The Green Jug,” will be on display at the city’s Emergency Operations Center for the remainder of the one year period until the next CERT competition. The CERT program is a homeland security initiative designed to educate citizens about disaster preparedness for hazards that may impact their area and trains them in basic disaster response skills, such as fire safety, light search and rescue, team organization, and disaster medical operations.
CERT members assist others in their neighborhood or workplace following an event when professional responders are not immediately available to help. They also support emergency response agencies by taking active roles in emergency preparedness projects in their community. Call Southfield Emergency Management at (248) 796-5990 for more information.