CDP resident training courses to include ‘Community Lifelines’ information

When they resume, all resident training courses at the Center for Domestic Preparedness will include a small block of instruction on FEMA ‘Community Lifelines.’

Lifelines are fundamental services in a community that enable it to function smoothly. They are grouped into seven categories (safety and security; food, water and shelter; health and medical; energy, which includes power and fuel; communications; transportation; and hazardous materials), and serve as a frame of reference for elected officials, emergency managers and first responders to better understand the status of these services in a disaster.

The CDP weaves information about a current issue or topical matter – which is applicable to all responders – into each of its resident courses, to enhance students’ training experience.

During the past year, students attending CDP resident courses were provided material about Fentanyl and fourth generation nerve agents (i.e. Novichok), to include incident response information. That material is currently being transitioned into a pair of 3- to 4-minute videos and should be available on the CDP YouTube page (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCygLDQbg9Cqburp_0D7K5Sw) by the end of October.

The Center for Domestic Preparedness teaches advanced disaster response skills to more than 50,000 responders annually, from emergency management officials to law enforcement officers, firefighters, and doctors, nurses and other healthcare workers. The responders represent all states and U.S. territories, as well as a number of foreign countries.

Since it opened its doors in 1998, the CDP has trained more than 1.2 million responders.