Neighborhood Emergency Response Team (NERT) - What is it?

NERT describes itself as: “a free training program for individuals, neighborhood groups and community-based organizations in San Francisco. Through this program, individuals will learn the basics of personal preparedness and prevention. The training also includes hands-on disaster skills that will help individuals respond to a personal emergency as well as act as members of a neighborhood response team.” For more program information see the SFFD NERT website.

Under the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and Citizen Corps umbrellas, over 2,700 NERT/Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) programs have been established in cities across the country.

San Francisco's team is one of the most robust programs in the country, trains an average of 3,000 people each year and offers classes in other languages.

Main Content Producer on NERT's Social Media Platforms

MAIN WEBSITE: SFFD NERT

TWITTER: @SFFDNERT

FACEBOOK: San Francisco Fire Department Neighborhood Emergency Response Team (NERT)

Facebook Live Video: Demo of the SFFD search dogs

I enjoy spreading the awareness of NERT, showing what our drills are like, how diverse of a group we are, and what we can accomplish as a community team. In April 2019, I led a social media campaign to drive participation for our citywide drill, resulting in a 33% increase in sign-ups in just 6 days. Below is a video I created for this campaign and examples of the social media header photos I produced.

The new communication system I co-designed and launched

What I bring to the NERT program: I'm most proud of the new communication system I co-designed and launched to create a first-of-its-kind pathway for all forms of visual and digital communication to go from the field quickly up the chain of command. By utilizing social media platforms, we can get those important scene visuals to the battalion chiefs so they can get a better idea of the damage and rescue needs in their area.

Where this idea came from: Through my experience as a digital/social media producer at ABC7 News, I saw many examples of people turning to social media for the latest info and to share eyewitness accounts immediately following a disaster. After joining NERT in 2012 I thought, "What if we could get tweets, photos and real-time video in front of the experienced eyes of a fire battalion chief? Would the rescue response be quicker and more efficient with the right equipment?" Bouncing around these ideas, our Twitter program began to take flight. 

Invited Speaker and FEMA Webinar Co-Presenter

Thanks to the NERT program coordinator, I was paired up with another social media-minded NERT who was eager to bring their tech expertise to the table. I enjoy working with such energetic people like Anietie Ekanem (pictured right), the CEO and Chief Solutions Guru of Social Niche Guru Inc.!

For the past five years, we've taken NERT members from downloading the Twitter app to sending messages to each other within an Incident Command System (ICS). The idea is if critical messages, photos and video can be sent and received faster, the faster the rescue response and more lives saved in the first hours following a major disaster. 

Our ongoing classes also train NERTs how to find and document damage or rescue reports coming from the public. To hear the details of this program, you can watch the webinar Anietie and I did in 2017 for FEMA’s Individual and Community Preparedness Division. (Length 45-60 min. using Adobe Connect)

San Francisco NERT Recognized by FEMA

In 2016, the NERT program was awarded FEMA's John D. Solomon Individual & Community Preparedness Award at a special ceremony at the White House.