Clovis CERTClovis CERT

Building an Advanced Program One Volunteer at a Time

• Clovis Facts– 99,983 population– 23.96 miles– Ag/Service Based

Economy

• Fire Dept– 62 Personnel– 5 Stations– CERT Program

since 2006

• Clovis CERT Data– 350 graduated

members – 50 active ‘core’

group members– Established as a

501c3– Started as

simple ‘catch and release’

Clovis Who/What/WhereClovis Who/What/Where

Citizen VolunteersCitizen Volunteers• Quality vs. Quantity• Meaningful “Stuff to

Do”• Capitalizing on

Volunteer Interest or innate skills sets

• It’s not just about disasters

• It is about partnerships

Clovis CERT AdvancedClovis CERT Advanced• Started with 1 ‘SUPER’ Volunteer

– Activities– Community Support– Improved course offerings– Department support roles for

volunteers

• Support Unit

• Exercises

• Administration

• CERT Program

• ‘Super’ Volunteer containment Challenge

What just Happened?

ActivitiesActivities• Farmers Market

– Free Collaboration with Chamber of Commerce

– Eight Friday evenings from June – September

– Public Information re: CERT and fire extinguisher training for kids

• Downtown Electrical Parade– Traffic Control– Barricade Placement– Shuttling personnel to

Command Center

• Playground Restoration– Dig out old equipment– Replace ground cover– Install new equipment

Community SupportCommunity Support• Heat Wave Support

– Staffed when temperatures exceeded 105º from 5pm – 10pm

– Provided relief for 15 people displaced by extreme heat

– Made 160 phone calls to special needs citizens to ensure adequate cooling measures

• Sandbagging– Staffed for two nights in

collaboration with Public Utilities– 1600 bags created over two

nights– Assignments: filling, loading,

distribution to residents, traffic control

• Smoke Detector Installations– 800 Detectors installed in high-

risk mobile homes over four weeks

Department SupportDepartment Support• Mass Care/Shelter Trailer

– Support for 200– Blankets, Cots, Care Kits– Supplied consistent with ARC

requirements and MOU drafted for deployment out of area by ARC

Department SupportDepartment Support• Support 41

– CERT personnel trained in defensive driving and Firefighter Rehabilitation

– On-Scene Victim Support• Clothing• Child essentials

– Hydration

– SCBA bottles

– After Action Reports

2006 - 20132006 - 2013• Average Volunteer Hours =

8,000/yr• Teen CERT program graduated

200 students at CART• Responded to 6 house fires with

EAU support (2013)• Graduated 30 basic CERT

members• 12 personnel certified in

CPR/AED• Provided $200 scholarship to

one Teen CERT graduate• Performed 5 training exercises• Rehabilitated arson destroyed

playground

• StormReady Certification – 1st in the Valley (1/14/08) in collaboration with NWS

– 10 CERT members trained as part of certification

• Station 1 Opening (1/26/08)– Public Education Booth

• Joint MCI Exercise w/ SF CERT (2/21 – 2/22/14)

• 22 Presidential Service Awards for members with 1,000 hours of service

• CERT graduates come back to design and proctor full-scale exercises at the end of every subsequent CERT class

• 15 CERT members staff the Fire Department Annual Open House

Where Clovis CERT Where Clovis CERT Spends TimeSpends Time

How/Why does it Work?How/Why does it Work?

• Strong Leadership Team comprised of volunteers that hold each other accountable

• Life Safety Enforcement Manager gets out of the way

• Sense of Community is already strong in Clovis

• COLLABORATION WITH OUR LOCAL PARTNERS– Be creative– Think about joining forces

and blurring boundaries