After the tragedy of September 11th, the federal government, under the Department of Homeland Security established a network of Community Emergency Response Teams. In late 2005 about 25 Westlake residents took a course offered by the Jackson OEM, (Office of Emergency Management) where they studied fire safety, disaster medical operations, light search and rescue. These were on the introductary level and meant to be a stop gap until professionals arrived. As a newly formed C.E.R.T. team, we are beginning to address such topics as notification, evacuation and what can we do as first responders. With approximately 1,500 homes within Westlake and less that 25 C.E.R.T. members, it would be a good idea to review the following document so that you can do as much as possible for yourself. Disaster Preparedness for Seniors, please click here The form is in PDF format. You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader to view and print it.