Belmar, New Jersey has just graduated its first CERT class, and has started to recruit a second. Belmar, sensibly, takes an approach that makes it easy for participants to complete the one night per week/eight week program, apparently also providing gear rather than making new volunteers find their own (and, alas, often get fleeced in the process). The next class will start in the fall – anyone interested can contact the CERT head, Dennis Ryan on this page.

Interestingly, Belmar has added CPR and defibrillation to the curriculum, not normally part of the standard program (on the assumption that CPR and defib are best used when there is an expectation of imminent hospital and/or ALS ambulance care – often absent in mass casualty incidents.

We note that with its first class of 27, if it graduates and holds four equal-sized classes, Belmar will equal San Francisco in per capita participation in CERT/NERT by citizens and residents.