Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the NERT Report topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Fire department and volunteers brief supervisors on NERT; committee files report
Summary
Supervisors heard a report on the Neighborhood Emergency Response Team (NERT) Oct. 23, where presenters described training offerings, volunteer contributions and gaps in supply caches; the committee voted 3-0 to hear and file the report.
The Public Safety and Neighborhood Services Committee on Oct. 23 received a report on the Neighborhood Emergency Response Team, the San Francisco Fire Department's volunteer preparedness program, and voted 3-0 to have the item heard and filed.
Supervisor Matt Slaughter opened the hearing and said the session would highlight the long-running volunteer network, which began after the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake. Gary Pegueros, chair of the NERT advisory board, described the program's history and free training portfolio, including the full 24-hour NERT course, the 90-minute SF Ready workshop and Listos, an eight-hour Spanish-language program taught by Spanish-speaking firefighters.
Captain Brandon Tom, the Fire Department's NERT program coordinator, said the program relies on volunteer trainers and has logged about 7,600 volunteer hours in recent work supporting drills, pandemic response, cooling centers and shelter operations. Nathan Karkoski, an advisory board member, said the city's Department of Planning counts roughly 7,000 blocks and that presenters estimated about 10,000 active NERT volunteers citywide (about one per block). He and other presenters highlighted that only three neighborhood supply caches currently exist and asked supervisors to help expand caches and promote training to improve equity of coverage.
Supervisor Danny Sauter asked whether FEMA funding remains available; Captain Tom said FEMA grant funding that initially supported the program has ended and currently the program receives no FEMA grant funds. The discussion also touched on barriers to adding caches, including available donated storage space and restrictions on using some Recreation & Parks property; presenters identified Miraloma Park, Bayview Hunters Point and a Stonestown/Lakeshore-area shared site as existing cache locations.
The committee saw a short SFGovTV video the presenters said will be used to publicize NERT and recruit younger volunteers. With no public comment, Supervisor Sauter moved to have the item heard and filed; the clerk recorded three ayes and the motion passed.
The filed report documents NERT's ongoing volunteer training programs, identifies coverage and supply gaps and requests supervisor support to promote training and funding for additional neighborhood caches.
