Greek organization forms emergency-response team

Funded by a grant of more than $2,400 from the Department of Homeland Security, 12 fraternity and sorority members are preparing to help the community in the event of a fire, tornado or any other disaster that might strike the area.\nAfter learning about the Community Emergency Response Team through a meeting of the Junior Greek Council, the students are volunteering their time to learn life-saving skills to assist Bloomington first responders if they are needed.\n“If there was a disaster here in Bloomington and a tornado went down the extension and knocked over three houses, the Bloomington first responders would be overwhelmed,” said Evan Summers, vice president of membership development for Interfraternity Council. “CERT will step in and act as volunteers and be able to help. Ideally, we would be able to save lives without endangering ourselves.”\nBeginning Feb. 11, the group will meet from noon to 5 p.m. Sunday on five occasions to learn techniques that will allow them to aid in emergencies. The class size is limited because of space, but Summers said he hopes classes will be extended so that more greeks can participate.\nThis group is the first greek organization throughout the nation to participate in CERT training, Summers said.\n“The Junior Greek Council focuses on areas of alcohol and sexual assault and how to help the greek community, but we’ve never focused on disaster,” Summers said. “This is a way to focus on the community.”\nCERT strives to expose the new members to the Junior Greek Council to the importance of preparing for disasters and any emergencies, such as fires, that may occur in their own houses, said Mark Brostoff, the lead CERT trainer and instructor in the School of Public and Environmental Affairs. \nBrostoff said they cover everything from fire suppression using extinguishers to rescue-breathing techniques. \n“We teach them disaster medical operations – the greatest good for the greatest number of potential victims,” he said.\nSummers said Indiana is in a disaster-prone area. There is a major fault line running through the state that may become active in the next 10 years, he said.\n“It was very eye-opening,” Summers said of the CERT training session. “We really could have to use this in our life.”\nSo far, with only one training session that was held Feb. 11, freshman Chelsee Montgomery of Alpha Xi Delta said they have gone over a lot of material. \nFreshman and Gamma Phi Beta member Jamie Titak said the first session was fun and the members learned about rescue breathing. If in a situation in which Titak and other CERT members would be asked to use their training, she said she would feel comfortable doing it. \n“CERT training provides them with the ability to help during any mass casualty and disaster when first responders are tied up or too busy because the major disaster is in many different locations,” Brostoff said. “The training allows them to assist friends, brothers and sisters within their community within the first 72 hours.”\nMembers of the training session received a backpack with about $200 in material to help with their training that was funded by the Department of Homeland Security. \n“We’ve received emergency packs with gloves and helmets, like a backpack,” Montgomery said. “We learned how to inspect a building to see how it is safe and about safety positions, so if someone’s airway is obstructed how to turn (them) on the side and check for breathing.”\nSummers said the last session, on April 1, will consist of a mock disaster at a fraternity house so the students can practice as if it were a real disaster. Small fires will be lit and students will extinguish them. \nAfter that, certification will be handed out to the participants, Summers said.\nStudents are first told how to respond in a certain emergency situation, then the students practice.\n“We’ll talk about it and then we actually have a partner and go and do it,” Montgomery said. “So with how to stop severe bleeding, we try it out on a partner and then we switch to make sure we all know how to do it.”\nWhat Montgomery likes most about the sessions is that it is more than a lecture.\n“That’s very important,” she said. “Even if in your house, it’s helpful to know how to turn off the gas and to know basic first aid. It is inevitable to have disasters and being prepared is helpful.”