Published February 15 2019
When Vasundhara Jain decided to enroll in emergency response training last year, she figured the skills she learned would come in handy. She had no idea.
On the evening of Jan. 9, when Jain briefly left her kitchen, oil she was heating in a pan caught fire. Although the hallway smoke alarm had not yet sounded, flames already extended to the cabinets above the stove when she returned to the kitchen.
Following directions she received in a Community Emergency Response Team class in September, Jain quickly called 911, then grabbed the fire extinguisher and put the fire out before firefighters arrived. A blaze that easily could have destroyed her home on the 3600 block of 116th Avenue Northeast had only singed her cabinets and the wall behind the range.
The battalion chief on the scene had been one of Jain’s CERT instructors, and she excitedly told the fire crew how the training gave her the confidence to use the extinguisher effectively. Not only that, based on information from the CERT class, Jain had earlier replaced her old, outdated extinguisher – which had been recalled – with a multi-purpose model that worked just right on the oil and electric burner.
CERT is a federal program that supports residents learning basic response skills so they can help their neighborhoods should disaster strike and first responders are delayed. The Fire Department’s Office of Emergency Management offers CERT classes throughout the year.
You can sign up for CERT classes or email oempubliced@bellevuewa.gov. For residents who can’t commit three hours a week for eight weeks to the training, Emergency Management also offers CERT Lite, a three-hour course focused on critical, life-saving skills.
CPR training also available
King County is a leader in cardiac arrest survival, in great part because bystanders here often recognize the signs of cardiac arrest, call 911 and know how to start CPR immediately, while paramedics are on the way.The Fire Department offers CPR classes that follow the American Heart Association’s Heartsaver CPR curriculum. This includes doing effective compressions, breathing for the victim without or with a barrier mask and using an automated external defibrillator.
Classes are offered regularly to residents at our downtown fire station as well as to business groups by request. For more information or to register, call 425-452-6885 or go to CPR Classes.