CERT Field Operating Guide is Great for Triage ~ Buy One for Your CERT Bag

September 18, 2019 by Michelle

ARTICLE/ PHOTOS.

Last weekend I taught Triage at the First Coastside CERT Rodeo.It took me a while to understand triage and it was hard to teach, for me. Coastside Half Moon Bay Cal Fire Battalion Chief Dave Cosgrave broke it down to:

Green ~ Reserved for the “walking wounded” who will need medical care at some point, after more critical injuries have been treated.. “If you can walk, walk to the green triage tarp”.

Black ~ Dead. 10 second triage. They must breathe in 10 seconds. If not, you move on doing the greatest good for the greatest number. CERT do not move the dead. For the deceased and for those whose injuries are so extensive that they will not be able to survive given the care that is available.

Red ~ (immediate) are used to label those who cannot survive without immediate treatment but who have a chance of survival.

30+ – 2+ – CAN DO?

ONLY ONE METRIC IS NECESSARY TO GO IMMEDIATE / RED

30+ seconds respirations >> Red/ Immediate
2+ seconds capillary refill >> Red/ Immediate
No Can Do? >> Red/ Immediate

Yellow ~ For those who require observation (and possible later re-triage). Their condition is stable for the moment and, they are not in immediate danger of death. These victims will still need hospital care and would be treated immediately under normal circumstances. If they are not Green, Black or Red … They are yellow!

Concise Triage Card

(Thanks to Michelle Moon)

Get your book via Amazon $10.72

Related

The average Coastsider may not be aware of the many emergency preparation resources available to us! Here’s a list of many of those resources.

KHMB AM 1710 and FM 100.9

KHMB Radio AM 1710 and FM 100.9 is our local Emergency Radio Station. You would still want to tune in to KCBS for Bay Area wide emergency news. Make sure you have a radio!
Go to: KHMB or KHMBRadio.com to tune in.

CEC – Coastside Emergency Corp

From Waddell Creek to Devil’s Slide and up to Skyline are 4 Branches of emergency prepared coastside citizens that are forming. They include many emergency disciplines.
Go to: CEC Portal

CERT Teams – Community Emergency Response Team

Trainings are offered a couple of times per year up and down the coast CERT volunteers are forming Neighborhood Watches to help their neighbors get prepared.
Go to: FEMA page on CERT

CEAP

Charise McHugh of the Half Moon bay Chamber of Commerce has worked for several years to organize businesses on the coastside in an emergency via the Coastside Emergency Action Plan). If you are a business and have not already participated, please contact the Chamber. In an emergency we need to know where our resources are and how to deploy materiel, and how to get refunded by FEMA.
Go to: HMB Chamber Page on CEAP

SMC Alert

It is a free alert system that will come to your cell phone, your tablet or computer, or all three. There is no charge, although your carrier may charge for texts. This is the best way to stay on top of traffic accidents.
Go to: SMCAlert.info to sign up

MRC – Medical Reserve Corps

Doctors and nurses work together to become the backbone of an emergency medical situation. Coastside Emergency Experts will tell you that the Coastside will be on its own in a major earthquake disaster for 5-7 days. And we no longer have a Medical Reserve Corps on the Coastside! Contact mdragony@coastsidebuzz.com if you are interested in creating a new chapter.

HAM Radio

ARES—Amateur Radio Emergency Service—of Half Moon Bay
Go to: their website

Red Cross

We have several Red Cross trailers on the Coast. Take a Red Cross class so you can help in one the shelters during a disaster.
Go to: Sign up for a class or Contact Local Red Cross volunteer Jim Holley

NextDoor

Have you signed up with Next Door? Next Door is a great social media tool that will help you stay up to date with what is going on in your neighborhood and other neighborhoods on the Coast.
Go to: NextDoor.com to sign up.

Michelle Dragony, founder of CoastsideBUZZ.com, is also a civilian CERT trainer working with Dave Cosgrave, Cal Fire Battalion Chief of Half Moon Bay, and Ari Delay, Cal Fire Battalion Chief of La Honda. Email here at mdragony@coastsidebuzz.com if you have any questions.