Delaware County residents can learn about disaster preparedness at two free public safety and emergency preparedness sessions that will educate people not only about their own personal preparedness, but also how to help during a greater emergency in their workplace or community.

The dates are Sept. 17 in Brookhaven and Sept. 26 in Middletown. Delaware County Council and the County’s CERT (Community Emergency Response Teams) program are partnering with the Delaware County Local Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC) to offer the two seminars during September, which is Emergency Preparedness Month.

County Council was joined in announcing the seminars at their Sept. 5 meeting by Maureen Hennessey Herman, Director of Intercommunity Health Coordination, Dr. George Avetian, Delaware County Senior Medical Advisor, Edwin J. Truitt, Director of Emergency Services, Ed Kline, Volunteer Management Coordinator, and Delaware County Citizen Corps volunteers.

Emergency preparedness activities are carried out in Delaware County not only by police and fire departments but also by the County Emergency Services Department which provides emergency communications at the 9-1-1 Center and coordinates and manages response in times of disaster or emergency, as well as the County Department of Intercommunity Health Coordination which serves as the regional Emergency Medical Services (EMS) office and oversees the activities of about 50 EMS organizations and serves as a referral and resource agency on public health issues.

Delaware County’s CERT program is operated through the Department of Intercommunity Health Coordination. CERT courses benefit all citizens, helping them to be better prepared to respond to and cope with the aftermath of a disaster.

The CERT program educates people about disaster preparedness and trains them in basic disaster response skills, such as fire safety, light search and rescues and disaster medical operations.

“It’s important for people to be prepared for an emergency, whether it’s a power outage in your home or a major disaster in the county,” said County Council Chairman Tom McGarrigle. “CERT is about readiness, about helping people, about partnerships between local government, emergency responders and the community.”