VAN NUYS : Disaster Assessment Training Offered

Volunteers for the American Red Cross will be able to attend a series of training courses this weekend on a variety of subjects from shelter operations to making damage assessments after a disaster.

But those who want to take a course must have already taken the prerequisite course, Introduction to Disaster Services, which provides the basic information about disasters and the role of the Red Cross, said Joe Bidwell, assistant disaster specialist for the agency’s San Fernando Valley District in Van Nuys.

“There’s going to be nine classes during those two days,” said Bidwell.

Other topics include how to manage supplies during a disaster, health services, making reports, and skills in the art of helping others.

A recently created course is for local disaster volunteers and is aimed at helping to recruit and organize new volunteers immediately following a disaster.

“The lessons (learned) out of the Northridge earthquake would be part of that course,” said Bidwell, who took the class when it was first offered in August.

The course helps Red Cross workers interview and evaluate new volunteers and place them where their talents would be the most useful.

For more information on the classes being held Saturday and Sunday at the Red Cross Van Nuys district office, 14717 Sherman Way, call (818) 376-1723, or stop by the office to pick up a schedule.