Dr. Luis Suarez Hernández, Director of AKBS Social Community Program, graduated from CERT. The ceremony was held at the R. David Paulson Fire Rescue Headquarters – Doral / Miami.

CERT is a training program that prepares Floridians to help their families and neighbors in the event of a disaster in their community. Through CERT, citizens can learn about disaster preparedness and receive training in basic disaster response skills such as fire safety, light search and rescue, and disaster medical operations.

With this training, Florida volunteers can provide critical support in their local communities by giving immediate assistance to victims before emergency first responders arrive on scene. CERT volunteers also support the community year-round by participating in community preparedness outreach activities and distributing materials on disaster preparedness and education.

History of CERT
Community Emergency Response Team. The CERT concept was developed and implemented by the Los Angeles City Fire Department in 1985. The Whittier Narrows earthquake in 1987 underscored the area-wide threat of a major disaster in California. Further, it confirmed the need for training civilians to meet their immediate needs.

CERT became a national program in 1993. There are now CERT programs in all 50 states, including many tribal nations and U.S. territories. Each is unique to its community and all are essential to building a Culture of Preparedness in the United States. There are over 2,700 local CERT programs nationwide and more than 600,000 people have trained since CERT became a national program.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) recommends that the standard, minimum ten-person team be comprised as follows.

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