CERT
CERT is an all-hazard, all-risk training program designed to teach you how to protect yourself, your family, your neighbors, and your community during a disaster situation. Through CERT, emergency personnel train members of neighborhoods, community organizations, or workplaces in basic disaster response skills. CERT members are then integrated into the emergency response plan for their area as appropriate.
If a disastrous event overwhelms or delays the community's professional emergency response, CERT members can assist others by applying basic response and organizational skills learned during training. These skills can help save and sustain lives following a disaster until professional help arrives. CERT skills may also apply to daily emergencies.
There is no cost to join CERT, only a time commitment on your part to attend all training modules (24 hours). Potential RSF Fire District CERT members must:
- Be at least 18 years of age.
- Live or work within the boundaries of the Rancho Santa Fe Fire Protection District (including Elfin Forest and Harmony Grove), Encinitas, Del Mar, or Solana Beach. (View a fire district boundary map to see if you live/work within the District. For more information on other agencies that offer CERT in San Diego County, visit the County Office of Emergency Service's CERT page.)
- Complete and submit an application.
Once you have graduated from the CERT program, you are considered an official CERT member and will be provided with a CERT hardhat, vest, gloves, and other safety equipment to help you perform the skills you learned in class. CERT members can maintain and refine their skills by participating in CERT exercises, activities, and supplemental training opportunities offered throughout the year.
If you have questions regarding the RSF CERT Program, please email us, or call 858-756-5971 during business hours.