As part of this national effort, Lealman Fire District is hosting two events to better prepare residents of Tierra Verde in times of emergency.

The first event is in partnership with the American Red Cross Citizen CPR Course held on Thursday evening, September 11th.

Research has shown that continuous Citizen CPR can be effective in caring for a person with no signs of life when a rescuer is unable, untrained or unwilling to perform full CPR. The best way for a bystander to help is by calling 9-1-1 and using Hands-Only CPR. It’s simple to do and there’s no mouth-to-mouth contact. In a life threatening situation, performing Hands-Only CPR is better than doing nothing at all.

We will be offering two sessions on September 11th in the TVCA Community Room located on the 2nd floor of the TD Bank building.

The first session is scheduled from 6pm to 6:45pm and Second session is scheduled at 7pm and will finish at 7:45pm.

There are no prerequisites or minimum age to participate in the course. The Citizen CPR training is not intended to substitute for a formal training course. Citizen CPR is a non-certified course.

Class size is limited to 20 and registration is required.

All participants will receive a TVFD “Stay Calm and Be Prepared” tee shirt. The second training course: Basic Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) Course. CERT is a national program to train individuals to assist first responders in times of disaster. This 18-hour course covers personal preparedness, fire safety & extinguishment, disaster medical operations, light search & rescue, and more. The course is being held at Eckerd College Tuesday, September 16th, Thursday, September 18th from 6:30pm until 9:30pm and on Saturday, September 20th from 9am until 6pm.

Attendance on all three days is required.

Participants completing the CERT Basic Program will receive a CERT equipment bag.

Over the last ten years, the Lealman Fire District has trained over 700 citizens in basic CERT.

The Lealman CERT Program is one of the most active programs in Pinellas County and the State of Florida.

This is a fast-paced course and truly prepares you to handle a disaster in your community.

Please visit www.lealmancert.org for more information on these courses and to register.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Captain Larry Thompson

at klt@lealmanfire.com

or at

(727) 481-2797.