CPR, home security, and fire safety sessions scheduled

The Bigfork Emergency Response Team, more commonly known as BERT, is back in action as they work to inform the community on ways to be prepared for emergencies.

BERT is an organization that works to bring local residents together to prepare for emergency situations such as earthquakes, floods and fires, as well as preparing food, water and places of safety until federal assistance arrives.

Part of BERT’s plan for the year is to host free monthly meetings for guest speakers with a certain expertise in emergency preparedness to share their knowledge with the community.

On Thursday, Tony Turk will share his knowledge of CPR and basic first aid from years of paramedic experience at BERT’s monthly meeting at the Bigfork Middle School cafeteria at 7 p.m.

Turk will cover the basics as well as the new standards for administering CPR.

Then on Feb. 21, Bigfork’s Vic Kautzman will discuss different types of home security systems and the benefits of each variety. Kautzman is a security consultant with Federal Protection For Montana, a company that specializes in home security systems and monitors as well as constructing banks and credit unions.

“There was a study done in 2010 that burglars spend less than 60 seconds in a home, so anything to make a home less easy to access like bolted doors act a deterrent,” Kautzman said.

Some of the systems Kautzman will discuss also monitor for smoke and fire and will notify local fire departments automatically, even without the residents inside the home. Other systems Kautzmen will cover allow homeowners to do things remotely to their homes such as lock the doors and turn off the heat by using their cell phones.

On March 21, former Bigfork Fire Chief Rick Trembath will discuss wildfire risks to homes and property in the Bigfork area and methods for risk reduction. Trembath has worked with fires since the mid 1960s and recently returned from the National Fire Academy in Maryland where he is writing a curriculum for one of their courses. He is currently a forest fire course instructor at Flathead Valley Community College.

“A lot of our district is in good shape but a lot of neighborhoods have considerable risks should a fire present itself,” Trembath said.

BERT is working alongside Sherry Stevens of the United Way to bring more training sessions to the area. The group is also working with Flathead and Lake County Emergency, Army Corp of Engineers, the Red Cross, Amateur Radio Emergency Services, and other organizations with safety and disaster mitigation goals.

BERT is also planning another Preparedness Fair for later this spring with informational booths and sessions for residents interested in emergency preparedness.

For more information about BERT, contact Bruce Nelson at 270-7961 or go to bigforkemergencyinfo.com.