Community Emergency Response Team (CERT)

  
    To better prepare Belmar for future emergencies and to broaden our community’s overall response capability, the Borough has recently finished training its first Community Emergency Response Team (“CERT”).  

    We need more Belmar residents to join our CERT program. There are no limitations on becoming a CERT member, except a willingness to undergo the required 20 hours of instruction, and a desire to help your fellow residents in the event of an emergency.  All courses are taught one night a week over an eight-week period in the Belmar First Aid’s training room at Ninth & D Street. Any classes that are missed can easily be made up.  All CERT members receive certification in CPR and in using an Automated External Defibrillator. CERT members also receive a duffel bag full of equipment, including a CERT hard hat, protective eyewear, tools for turning off gas mains, and other items.

    The CERT program is part of the national Citizen Corps initiative, wich is designed to train Americans to be better prepared to respond to emergency situations in their communities. When emergencies happen, CERT members can give critical support to first responders, provide immediate assistance to victims, and organize spontaneous volunteers at a disaster site. CERT members can also help with non-emergency projects that help improve the safety of the community.

    We are looking for residents of all backgrounds, interests and ages (but must be over 18) to join this effort. The next CERT Training Course will start this fall.  For more information, contact Belmar Office of Emergency Management Director Dennis Ryan at 732-681-3700 extension 225 

    For answers to Frequently Asked Questions about CERT, click here.   To view videos of instruction courses similar to those CERT volunteers receive, click here.