CERT Classes

Ever since Matt and I have been married I have been wanting to take the CERT Course that is given through the city, but we either forget to go the first day, or it just wasn't that important. Then when I was called as the emergency preparedness specialist for the ward I told Matt we were going to do it. I thought I was going to have a hard time getting him to the classes, but he has really supported me in this.
Last week was the first class. It was pretty much just an overview of what we will be learning during the next 8 weeks. CERT stands for Comunity Emergency Response Team so we learn basic skills that will help ourselves and the community before, during, and after a disaster.
Last night was the unit on fire safety. We learned what is needed to have a fire (fuel,oxygen,heat), the different types of fires such as Class A fires which are started with ordinary combustibles(paper, cloth, wood, rubber), Class B fires:Flammable liquids and combustible liquids, Class C fires: Energized electrical equipment, and Class D fires: Combustible metals; and how to put out a fire with a fire extinguisher.
We learned that when putting out a fire you need to use the buddy system. As you go in to fight the fire always have two ways out just in case one gets blocked. Make sure you have all the necesary equipment you need to be able to fight the fire (helmet,gloves,safety glasses, and fire extinguisher. as you go in one person goes first while the second holds to the back of his/her shirt. The first calls ready the second looks around and makes sure everything is safe then calls ready. Then the first person calls "Going In", and the second one says "Going In". Then you walk toward the fire keeping low when you get close enough to the fire you try to put it out using the fire extinguisher. When you have put it out the first person says "Backing out" and the second person says backing out. The first person never turns their back on the fire while the second person leads them out of the area.
Next week is the Search and Rescue Unit so be looking forward to a blog about that next week.