In the CERT class, you had about 30-45 minutes of instruction on how to organize a CERT team. This module was based on the Incident Command System (ICS). You were lectured on very basic concepts. These concepts are adequate to manage a small team dealing with a single very small emergency that the team can handle by itself. You will need more training in situations when there are multiple emergencies simultaneously and/or if you need multiple agencies' help beyond your local CERT team to deal with the emergency.
After Hurricane Katrina in 2005, President George Bush signed Homeland Security Presidential Directive (HSPD-5). HSPD-5 provides that emergencies in this country which received federal funds will be managed in a uniform manner, ICS. It did no good after the World Trade Center towers collapsed when different New Jersey fire departments crossed into New York to help only to find their fire hoses could not be attached to New York city fire hydrants which had a different thread. After Hurricane Katrina, local fire and police agencies were unable to communicate due to different frequencies and some agencies had converted to digital while others were still analog. It delays the response when in a wildfire different fire agencies which come to help but have different names for the same equipment. When they think they are calling for a particular piece of equipment under their department's name for that equipment and another fire agency on the other end of the radio delivers a piece of equipment that is what their fire department uses for that equipment there is a lack of standard terminology.
The Emergency Management Institute (EMI) of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) offers the 4 basic ICS courses on-line for free. Most people take one evening to complete IS-100 and another to take IS-200. Others take an evening or two to take IS-700 and a few evenings to do IS-800. When taking IS-800 trying making you own glossary.
IS 100, Introduction to the Incident Command System
IS-200, Basic Incident Command System
IS 700, National Incident Command System
IS 800, National Response Plan, An Introduction.
See: http://www.training.fema.gov/EMIweb/IS/crslist.asp
If you take the interactive on-line version, you might have technical problems on FEMA's servers. A better way to take the course is to download the material, take the course, and submit the exam on-line, while retaining hard copy of your answers.
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There are live courses beyond this - some for free. The FEMA on-line courses are prerequisite for these live courses. Then there are a few pre-requisites aimed at various types of first responders. Police, fire, medical, public works, all have specialty course in their fields - some which are free. Once the on-line FEMA courses and specialty courses are taken, one can take live classes which involve simulations. These courses are offered regionally by instructional teams under contract to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. (see: TEEX Mgt 313/IS300 page on this site)
At higher levels, there are residential classes using sophisticated computer simulations. Full-time responders, and a few volunteers, fly to a training facility from around the country that specializes in their field, and the class does a week long simulation aided by computers.
For most CERT volunteers, the 4 free FEMA on-line courses are sufficient.
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There is a useful ICS handbook which is a free download at:
http://www.firescope.org/
The U.S. Coast Guard has an improved version of the Firescope ICS guidebook:
http://www.uscg.mil/hq/g-m/mor/Articles/ICS.htm
Even if you do not take these 5 courses, it would be useful to download these manuals to have in your backpack as you and your neighbors try to deal with a neighborhood emergency.
