RBFD Recruiting New CERT Classes

Members of the community who wish to learn about disaster preparedness are invited to enroll in the Community Emergency Response Team Academy.

The Redondo Beach Fire Department is now accepting applications for its next two Community Emergency Response Team programs. The first of the two, CERT Academy No. 46, runs from Feb. 9 through March 31. CERT Academy No. 47 runs from Sept. 6 through Oct. 27. Classes are held Thursday evenings from 6:30 p.m. until 9:30 p.m. at the Redondo Beach Main Library at 303 N. Pacific Coast Highway. Only 40 people can enroll in each class, and registration is on a first-come, first-served basis. The minimum age requirement is 18. The cost is $40 for Redondo Beach residents and $100 for nonresidents. The program educates people about disaster preparedness and trains participants in basic disaster response skills, including CPR, first aid, search and …

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Blossom Chronicles

Marchese Is Multitasker Extraordinaire

Civic-mindedness and a flair for comedy keep Redondo Beach resident Sandy Marchese hopping.

If you said that Sandy Marchese suffers from multiple personality syndrome, you wouldn't be far off. One never knows if she will turn up in uniform to ticket a car illegally parked in a handicapped zone; don a hard hat to demonstrate ways travelers can respond to a terrorist attack; or pop up on stage as Olga Bogachev, one of many characters she assumes as a member of the April's Fools Comedy Improv Troupe. In her multi-level home in south Redondo Beach, Marchese literally dealt from a deck of business cards to reflect her numerous identities—among them, event planner for Masterpiece Meetings & Events; marketer/trainer for Protection at Location (PAL); past president of CERT (Community Emergency Response Team); public safety commissioner; …

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State Stages Giant Earthquake Drill

The "Great California ShakeOut" is meant to simulate a magnitude-7.8 earthquake.

For the fourth year in a row, public safety agencies, universities, businesses and others will take part in a statewide earthquake drill today intended to raise awareness about how to prepare for a major quake. The "Great California ShakeOut" will begin at 10:20 a.m., when millions of people across the state will "drop, cover and hold on" for a few minutes to practice what to do immediately when an earthquake begins. Officials say that trying to run outside or taking a position in an interior doorway are dangerous. According to organizers, 8.2 million people statewide have registered to join the exercise, surpassing last year's record total 7.9 million participants. "This is now officially the largest earthquake preparedness drill ever," …

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Photos: CERT Stages Earthquake Drill

CERT organizations from across the South Bay participate in the Beach Cities Joint "Great ShakeOut" drill.

CERT (Community Emergency Response Team) organizations from across the South Bay participated in the Great Shakeout drill in Manhattan Beach on Saturday afternoon. This year's drill involved a simulated earthquake with multiple building collapses and a secondary gas explosion. Volunteers served as realistically made-up victims for rescuers to find. Members of the Manhattan Beach, Redondo Beach, Hermosa Beach and Palos Verdes CERT organizations, among others, as well as local fire departments gathered at Mira Costa High School at the beginning of the event. Participants used multiple skills taught in CERT programs, including fire suppression, search and rescue and first aid. Check out our gallery above for photos from the exercise.

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