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Allen County CERT

Fort Wayne/Allen County Office of Homeland Security
Date last updated: Mar 8, 2013

General Information

Month and year the CERT Program was started: May 2004

Geographic Area: ALLEN (County)

Point of Contact:
Matt Brokaw
MRC Coordinator
Allen County CERT
200 E. Berry Street
Suite 360
Fort Wayne, IN 46802

(260) 449-3243
Matt.Brokaw@ci.ft-wayne.in.us

Training

On average, this CERT Program conducts the CERT Basic Training Course 3 times a year.

Number of CERT classes that have graduated since the program started: 14

Number of individuals who have completed CERT Basic Training Course since the program started: 276

Local CERT Programs offer training to the general public and/or to particular groups in the community. This CERT Program holds classes for the following groups:
  • General public / Open classes
  • Specific neighborhood groups
  • Businesses
  • Critical infrastructure sectors (e.g., utilities, public transportation)
  • Government groups
  • Faith-based organizations
  • Colleges / Universities
Language(s) in which the program conducts CERT training:
  • English

Supplemental Training

Supplemental training conducted, recommended, and/or required for CERT members:
  • CERT Animal Response I
  • CERT Animal Response II
  • IS-100.a Introduction to Incident Command System (ICS)
  • IS-200.a ICS for Single Resources
  • IS-700.a National Incident Management System (NIMS), An Introduction
  • Amateur radio operation
  • Additional CBRNE awareness
  • Cardio-Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPR)
  • Automatic External Defibrillation (AED)
  • Additional damage assessment
  • Decontamination techniques
  • Basic first aid
  • Mass care
  • Shelter operations/management

Exercises

A total of 35 CERTs have participated in 2 WMD/terrorism exercises for emergency personnel.

A total of 250 CERTs have participated in 20 natural disaster exercises for emergency personnel.

A total of 50 CERTs have participated in 4 medical emergency/strategic national stockpile exercises for emergency personnel.

A total of 50 CERTs have participated in 4 CERT-specific exercises.

CERT in Action

Emergencies

Number of times the CERTs have responded in actual emergencies:20

Types of emergencies/disasters to which the CERTs have responded:
  • Flood
  • Pandemic
  • Severe thunderstorm
  • Winter storm

Activities During Emergencies

Activities conducted by CERTs during past emergencies:
  • Medical intervention (triage or treatment)
  • Debris removal
  • Sandbagging
  • Managing / processing supplies or donations
  • Traffic management / Crowd management
  • Staffing Emergency Operating Center
  • Staffing shelters
  • Community relations / Distribution of emergency information to public

Non-Emergency Functions

Non-emergency functions performed by CERT members:
  • Mitigation activities
  • Support for emergency planning (neighborhoods, schools, community)
  • Support for public safety at community events
  • Emergency preparedness
  • Public health issues
  • Home safety / prevention assistance to others (winterizing homes, fire safety actions, crime prevention steps, etc.)

Additional CERT Program Information

The Allen County CERT Basic Academy Course is conducted one night a week for 7 weeks from 6pm to 9pm on the weekdays. The course is concluded with a mock disaster drill and graduation ceremony held on the following Saturday.