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McKinney CERT LogoCERT Training

The CERT class consists of nine units over eight weeks, covering Disaster Preparedness, Fire Safety, Emergency Medical Operations, Search and Rescue, Disaster Psychology, CERT Organization and Terrorism. It ends with a Disaster Day exercise in which CERT members get to put their newly learned skills to the test in a real-life scenario. CERT classes are free and open to citizens who live or work in McKinney. For more information, please contact Emergency Management at 972-547-2850.
 
What is CERT?
The McKinney Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) is a training program that prepares citizen volunteers to respond to emergency situations that may affect our community. CERT members are trained to be self-sufficient for up to 72 hours following a major emergency incident and can provide critical support to professional first responders. They provide immediate assistance to victims and organize spontaneous volunteers at a disaster site.
 
CERT members are considered Good Samaritans and are covered under the Volunteer Protection Act. CERT volunteers do not have any authority beyond serving as a Good Samaritan when helping others.

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Citizen's Fire Academy

The Academy is designed for individuals who live or work in McKinney and want to know more about their Fire Department. Training includes climbing the fire truck ladder and putting out a car fire. Academy Alumni assist the Fire Department in various ways including operating the Rehabilitation Unit, providing firefighters a place to recuperate during calls.

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Neighborhood Watch

The McKinney Neighborhood Watch program is coordinated through the McKinney Police Department. The goal of Neighborhood Watch is to reduce criminal victimization and to increase the incidence of citizens reporting criminal activity in progress.

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Police Service Volunteers

The McKinney Citizens Police Academy Alumni Association (MCPAA) and the McKinney Citizens on Patrol Association (MCOPA) are the primary way the McKinney Police Department coordinates and recruits volunteers. Participants in these programs help to patrol, provide crowd and traffic control, perform child identification at events along with many other activities. To become a part of either MCPAA or MCOPA citizens must first complete the Citizens Police Academy.

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Medical Reserve Corps

The Collin County Medical Reserve Corps program coordinates the skills of practicing and retired physicians, nurses and other health professionals as well as other citizens interested in health issues. These individuals support local public health initiatives, assist local hospitals with personnel needs, participate in mass vaccination exercises and disaster drills and train with local emergency response partners.

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Emergency Preparedness

The Emergency Preparedness (EP) Merit Badge requiresEP Merit Badge Workbook Opens in new window the scout to effectively mitigate, prepare, respond to and recover from different types of emergency situations. The City of McKinney Office of Emergency Management (OEM) provides the tools necessary to successfully complete the requirements for this Merit Badge.

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Citizen Corps Council

Citizen Corps Councils build on community strengths to implement preparedness programs. They carry out a local strategy involving government, community leaders and citizens so they are prepared and resilient in the face of all hazards. This council encourages citizens to help make communities like McKinney safer through personal responsibility, training and volunteer service.

The McKinney Citizen Corps Council (MCCC) serves in an advisory capacity, working together to strategically and dynamically provide an enhanced level of service to our community. MCCC coordinates the efforts of volunteer public safety programs including Community Emergency Response Team (CERT), Volunteers in Police Service (VIPS), Neighborhood Watch (NW), Fire Corps, Citizens Police Academy (CPA) and Citizens Fire Academy (CFA).

The MCCC has members from the public, private, volunteer and community sectors. It offers public education and training activities in the areas of preparedness actions, hazard types, locations, targeted populations and response actions.

For more information on McKinney’s Citizen Corps Council, please visit the Citizen Corps website.

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