Spring Break
Students, staff prepared in case of emergency
Osvaldo Castillo
Issue date: 1/23/08 Section: News
If a disaster, such as an earthquake or terrorist attack, were to occur at SJSU, the best place to land a helicopter to evacuate the injured would be the Tower Lawn, said UPD emergency service officer Spencer Wong.
Wong instructed about 20 students and San Jose State University event staff members on how to deal with such emergency scenarios on Jan. 18 as part of the Community Emergency Response Team, or CERT, training program held free at SJSU.
"We are trying to make people well-rounded in these sorts of situations," he said. "We want them to be prepared."
Wong uses to the Community Emergency Response Team manual as a guide for his students.
The training manual has been adopted worldwide, said Calvin Lee, an operations student assistant.
The Los Angeles Police Department created the manual in 1985. It teaches individuals how to treat victims who are bleeding excessively, burned or seriously injured in some other form, Lee said.
"CERT also teaches how to use universal precaution when dealing with people who have been infected with different diseases," he said. "We teach people what steps to take to keep themselves and other victims from being infected."
Lee taught the students and event staff members how to take off a pair of "contaminated" latex gloves covered in mustard. He told the group the goal was to not get any mustard on any part of their body or clothing.
Dominic Rizzi, a junior biology major, said he attended the training because he wanted to help people and possibly save lives in case the campus was in such a scenario.
"I learned some of these techniques when I was in the Eagle Scouts," he said. "I wanted to refresh my memory on how to use them."
Rizzi believed that everyone who attends or works at SJSU should attend a class like this at one point or another.
Spencer Wong, the CERT training instructor, agreed with Rizzi.
"We have UPD ready to handle these kind of situations," he said. "But there might come a point where we need more people."
Wong said UPD has a staff of about 125, but he said he believed that was not enough to respond to any emergency with more than 30,000 students at SJSU.
He added that he would especially like to see people from the on-campus housing and Campus Village participate in this sort of training.
James Idemoto, a senior computer science major, said he has been meaning to take a class like this for a while.
"What I like best about what we are learning is that the techniques are transferable," he said. "You can use these techniques in a city also."
The trainees will receive a certificate upon completing the 20-hour CERT program, Wong said. Students of the program will also receive a rescue bag with a hard hat, latex gloves and respirator masks.
Wong said that he conducts CERT training twice a semester. The final training session of January is Friday at 8:30 a.m. at the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Library.
Wong instructed about 20 students and San Jose State University event staff members on how to deal with such emergency scenarios on Jan. 18 as part of the Community Emergency Response Team, or CERT, training program held free at SJSU.
"We are trying to make people well-rounded in these sorts of situations," he said. "We want them to be prepared."
Wong uses to the Community Emergency Response Team manual as a guide for his students.
The training manual has been adopted worldwide, said Calvin Lee, an operations student assistant.
The Los Angeles Police Department created the manual in 1985. It teaches individuals how to treat victims who are bleeding excessively, burned or seriously injured in some other form, Lee said.
"CERT also teaches how to use universal precaution when dealing with people who have been infected with different diseases," he said. "We teach people what steps to take to keep themselves and other victims from being infected."
Lee taught the students and event staff members how to take off a pair of "contaminated" latex gloves covered in mustard. He told the group the goal was to not get any mustard on any part of their body or clothing.
Dominic Rizzi, a junior biology major, said he attended the training because he wanted to help people and possibly save lives in case the campus was in such a scenario.
"I learned some of these techniques when I was in the Eagle Scouts," he said. "I wanted to refresh my memory on how to use them."
Rizzi believed that everyone who attends or works at SJSU should attend a class like this at one point or another.
Spencer Wong, the CERT training instructor, agreed with Rizzi.
"We have UPD ready to handle these kind of situations," he said. "But there might come a point where we need more people."
Wong said UPD has a staff of about 125, but he said he believed that was not enough to respond to any emergency with more than 30,000 students at SJSU.
He added that he would especially like to see people from the on-campus housing and Campus Village participate in this sort of training.
James Idemoto, a senior computer science major, said he has been meaning to take a class like this for a while.
"What I like best about what we are learning is that the techniques are transferable," he said. "You can use these techniques in a city also."
The trainees will receive a certificate upon completing the 20-hour CERT program, Wong said. Students of the program will also receive a rescue bag with a hard hat, latex gloves and respirator masks.
Wong said that he conducts CERT training twice a semester. The final training session of January is Friday at 8:30 a.m. at the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Library.
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spencer wong
posted 1/23/08 @ 9:32 AM PST
Just to clarify some misunderstandings in the article.
UPD does not have 125 staff members; it has ~32 sworn personnel (officers). The CERT team is composed of 125 members and therefore would augment the responding officers. (Continued…)
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