Dallas residents looking to level up their emergency response game have until November 7 to sign up for the city's free Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) Basic Training Course. These sessions, promptly kicking off on November 9 at the Dallas Fire-Rescue Training Academy, offer hands-on learning for when disaster strikes, from first aid to fire safety. The City of Dallas Office of Emergency Management & Crisis Response, the brains behind the training, is all about putting the power of preparedness into the hands of locals.

Spread over three Saturdays, the course demands a hearty commitment (full days on the 9th and 16th, and a half-day on the 23rd), but participants walk away CERT-certified. The meat of the training includes lessons on how to handle the ever-looming possibility of disasters in this unpredictable world of ours. According to details shared on the City of Dallas website, the third and final session culminates in a full-throttle disaster exercise.

While the current offerings are in English, Spanish speakers won't be left in the lurch; dates for Spanish language courses are in the works and will be announced down the line. It's a move that speaks to the City's inclusive approach to emergency planning – knowing that disasters, do not discriminate by language or culture.

The CERT program isn't just for show. Graduates find themselves with a suite of skills applicable not just to personal emergencies, but to wider community crises as well. Whether it's controlling a small blaze before the fire department arrives or bandaging a wound in the wake of a catastrophe, these volunteers become valuable assets to the local emergency response fabric. Jen Edwards, available at 469-834-1717, can dish out more information to those ready to jump in and help to safeguard our Dallas communities.