Mayor Daniel Lurie joined San Francisco Fire Department Chief Dean Crispen and Department of Emergency Management Executive Director Mary Ellen Carroll for a Neighborhood Emergency Response Team (NERT) training session. The free, community-based program teaches residents the basics of personal preparedness and disaster prevention.
NERT is the only organization of its kind in San Francisco, offering free training specifically designed for anyone who lives or works in the city. Participants gain practical skills in light search and rescue, medical triage, and disaster response coordination. (Give NERT a follow on Facebook!)
“Responding to an emergency requires all of us, and I appreciate the volunteers who are stepping up through NERT to help keep all of us safe,” said Mayor Lurie. “We are constantly coordinating across city departments to be ready for anything, but we must also make sure San Franciscans have the tools they need to keep themselves and their communities safe.”
Before an emergency, NERT provides an organizing framework for neighborhood teams throughout San Francisco to plan for surviving disasters together. After a disaster strikes, NERT teams set up command posts, initiate communications with the SFFD in coordination with battalion activation, survey their neighborhoods, and provide critical information to first responders.
Volunteers may also use their training to conduct lifesaving activities, helping their neighbors while professional emergency services work to reach those affected.
With extreme weather events and other threats on the rise, community preparedness is more important than ever. DEM Executive Director Mary Ellen Carroll emphasized the critical role volunteers play in building a resilient city.
“Preparedness is an integral part of creating a more resilient city,” Carroll said. “With ever-increasing extreme weather events and other threats, we will look to the whole community in response and recovery. DEM is grateful to all our SF NERT volunteers who have gone above and beyond in their training and preparedness to make sure our community is ready for what comes.”
The NERT program offers San Franciscans an opportunity to learn lifesaving skills while strengthening connections with their neighbors. Mayor Lurie encouraged residents to take advantage of this free resource, saying she is “inspired to see neighbors coming together, learning lifesaving skills, and strengthening our city’s resilience.”
Want to help build a safer San Francisco? The San Francisco Police Community Foundation brings together local businesses, nonprofits, and neighbors to support our police officers and strengthen community safety.
Through private donations from San Franciscans like you, we provide officers with better tools and resources while building trust between police and the communities they serve. Learn more today!
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