Page 4 THE VILLADOM TIMES I • October 17, 2012 FLOW Area Ramapo High students take CERT training by Frank J. McMahon Thirty-two Ramapo High School students have enrolled in the Franklin Lakes Community Emergency Response Team program and are now participating in the 16-hour training course that will provide them with critical emergency preparedness and response skills. The training is being held at the school following normal class hours on Tuesdays. However, last week, the students visited the Bergen County Law & Public Safety Institute on Campgaw Road in Mahwah, where they participated in a “fire condition” exercise under the direction of Franklin Lakes Fire Chief Denny Knubel and former Wyckoff Fire Chief Dave Murphy. The students’ training took place in the smoke house that is used to train fire fighters. Following completion of their training, the teen CERT members will be able to identify and anticipate hazards, reduce fire hazards in their homes and workplaces, extinguish small fires, assist emergency responders, conduct light search and rescue missions, set up medical treatment areas, and apply basic medical techniques. The students were motivated to join the program by Assistant Principal Dan Vander Molen. The educator explained that the new Teen CERT program is a community service training effort that prepares teens to help themselves, their families, their school, and community in the event of a disaster. “During an incident,” Vander Molen told the students, “emergency service personnel may not be able to reach everyone right away and by getting trained in Teen CERT you will have the skills to assist emergency responders, save lives, protect property and serve the community. As a member of a team, you can respond to disasters, and participate in drills and exercises.” Vander Molen explained that, under the direction of school and local emergency responders, CERT provides critical support by giving immediate assistance to victims, providing damage assessment information, and organizing other volunteers at a disaster site. “Teen volunteers trained in CERT also offer a potential workforce for perform- ing duties such as shelter support, crowd control, and evacuation,” Vander Molen explained. “In addition to supporting emergency responders during a disaster, the program builds strong working relationships between emergency responders and the people they serve.” The students have been attending the training sessions once a week since Sept. 25 and will continue through Nov. 13. Gather ‘round! Rabbi Sandy Olshansky, director of Life Long Learning at Temple Beth Rishon, prepared the kindergarten children in The Shabbat Club for Simchat Torah. They were able to see the torah up close and learn about the holiday. (Photo courtesy of Donielle Leigh.)