Hoodland Fire District’s firefighters used everything at their disposal to help
people affected by the flood last January, and stranded residents on the north
side of Lolo Pass Road chipped in with what they could.

But the next time a natural disaster strikes, the district hopes to be better
prepared by training civilians through a Community Emergency Response
Team to help out and by knowing what community resources exist
beforehand.

“We weren’t ready and it showed the community that maybe we should have
this group again,” said Senior Firefighter Kim Weaver. “You can’t always rely
on the bureaucracy.”

In preparation for the next event, Weaver has restarted a local CERT, called
the Hoodland Emergency Action Response Team, in order to train and educate
community members and plan for future disasters.

A first HEART began in 1998 and had 60 members at one point, but it
eventually fell apart due to inactivity.

HEART’s members will be volunteers in the community who will meet once a
month for a class on topics, including first aid and rescue operations. New
recruits will also take part in basic training courses over a six-week period.

When a flood or other natural disaster strikes, the district can activate specific
HEART members or teams in an affected area in order to carry out some tasks
that district firefighters might not be able to immediately perform.

Examples include collecting disaster intelligence and organizing spontaneous
volunteers who have not had training.

Weaver is also working on mapping out the various communities within the
fire district to learn what equipment (such as tractors or chain saws) exist in
each area that could be of use in an emergency.

“Some people are hesitant,” Weaver said. “If you think about it ... they’ll come
out of the wood to help us, so we might as well all become friends.”

He also hopes to secure a grant to get three generators; one for Government
Camp, one for the two schools and another for the western part of the fire
district, to be used in case of a large power failure.

“Right now, if Mount Hood erupts (for instance), everybody goes to the school
or Lion’s Club,” Weaver said. “The school has no power if the power is out;
there is no generator and the Lion’s Club is the same thing.”

The next two HEART meetings will be held at 3 p.m. May 1, and June 5, at the
Hoodland Fire District Main Station, 69634 Hwy. 26 in Welches.