Making Preparedness Our Mission!

Community Emergency Preparedness Academy  

 

CEPA was conceived early in 2003 as a collaborative effort between the City of Mission Viejo, the Orange County Fire Authority, the Orange County Sheriff’s Department, Mission Hospital, Medix Ambulance and the American Red Cross.  

Assuming there is a likelihood that neighbors may be in the area when an emergency occurs, the academy is uniquely organized through the Neighborhood Watch Program with the intent of preparing neighbors to work together before, during, and after disasters to minimize injury and facilitate recovery. The academy is a 32-hour certified curriculum that follows FEMA guidelines for citizen emergency response teams. It taught by emergency personnel from the collaborative agencies. It includes law and fire disaster operations, fire safety, light search & rescue, CPR/First Aid/AED certifications, basic crisis intervention and neighborhood mobilization. The sessions include hands-on exercises in which students extinguish real fires, extricate bodies from heavy debris and treat mock injuries in response to a simulated earthquake. 

Residents are encouraged to establish their own preparedness, as well as prepare to work with neighbors and function as a team to meet their group’s needs in a time of disaster. In so doing, Neighborhood Watch groups create vital support systems that will be activated in case of a disaster in the community. The program is also active in the South County Cities of Laguna Niguel, San Clemente, Rancho Santa Margarita, Lake Forest, Laguna Hills, Santiago Canyon, Silverado Canyon, Trabuco Canyon and Aliso Viejo.

In addition to CEPA, Neighborhood Watch provides on-going 2 hour trainings in different aspects of preparedness such as Neighborhood Preparedness Planning, Animal Safety, and Emergency Water Needs.  

Our next academy is to be scheduled. For more information, please call Police Services at (949) 470-8433. 

In a disaster, youth can be of great assistance in our neighborhoods. Teens Calling Teens To Action is the CEPA modified for teens by teens. Their Mission: To prepare the young adults (ages 14 to 18 years) of the community to help in response to emergency situations with knowledge, decisiveness and maturity. Date of next teen academy is to be announced. 

See Alert Bulletins for upcoming program schedules.  

If you don't know what to do, you are at greater risk when disaster strikes. The California Office of Emergency Services has assembled tips that you can gather on-line at their website www.oes.ca.gov Or you can phone (916) 845-8400 to request a copy of the brochure "10 ways you can be disaster prepared."

Other helpful websites with that can assist you in getting prepared are listed below:

• http://www.fema.gov/areyouready/index.shtm  
• http://www.fema.gov/kids  
• http://www.oc-redcross.org  

 

Contact Us : 

For more information on all of the above programs, please contact CEPA@cityofmissionviejo.org or call Police Services at (949) 470-8433.