Grant helps
emergency services
Hawaii will soon receive $190,000 to train citizens to better prepare to respond to emergency situations in their communities.
The grant is part of $19 million the Department of Homeland Security made available to expand the Community Emergency Response Teams nationwide.
Upon completion of a 20-hour training on disaster preparedness, basic disaster medical operations, fire safety, and light search and rescue, trained citizens will be able to provide immediate assistance to victims in an emergency.
Hawaii's active CERT program operates on Oahu and is sponsored by the Oahu Civil Defense Agency.
The grant money is in addition to $17 million distributed nationally last year. Hawaii received $170,700 of that last December.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency's goal is to train 400,000 citizens through the CERT program during the next two years.