Big Lake CERT Team Graduates – July 2011

The Big Lake community has formed a new Community Emergency Response Team thanks to funding provided from a grant applied for by city police officers, Sam Olson and Cindy Finch. This group is separate from the Sherburne County CERT group that Dave and...

Big Lake CERT Team Final Exercise and Graduation Photos

See my other post for a write-up of the evening. Here are some additional photographs of the first Big Lake CERT Graduating Class of 2011: #gallery-1 { margin: auto; } #gallery-1 .gallery-item { float: left; margin-top: 10px; text-align:...

Hot and Bothered

Here we are, smack-dab in the in the middle of some of the hottest weather we’ve had in a while. With temperatures pushing a hundred, and more to come, we are facing a week or so of the most miserable weather I have experienced. Certainly temps...

Spring Flooding May Affect Sherburne County

Kare11 had an article today warning local residents to prepare for possible flooding during the Spring thaw. We’ve had more snow than usual this winter and combined with all of the rain last fall, this is definitely something to be concerned about. The...

CERT Training – Week 4 Fire Safety and Terrorism

CERT Training – Week 4 Fire Safety and Terrorism 02-15-2011 – T. John Cunningham, Elk River Fire Chief Training Objectives: Fire chemistry Identifying and reducing fire hazards Basic fire suppression strategy Firefighting resources Firefighting...

CERT Training – Week 3 Disaster Medical Operations I & II

CERT Training – Week 3 Disaster Medical Operations I & II 02-08-2011 – Sgt. Jason Volkers Training Objectives: Treatment strategies for life-threatening conditions Principles of triage Week three of our CERT training brought us back to the...

CERT Training – Week 2 Light Search and Rescue

CERT Training – Week 2 Light Search and Rescue 02-01-2011 – Larry Narikawa Training Objectives: Search and rescue priorities and resources Techniques for situation size-up Lifting, cribbing, and victim removal Rescuer safety, including recognizing:...

CERT Training – Week 1 Disaster Preparedness and Psychology

I wrote about the CERT (Community Emergency Response Team) program a couple years ago when Dave and I started attending meetings.  When I heard that they were holding a certification class, I asked Dave if he wanted to attend with me. Even though I was...

As we passed through Waterloo, Iowa on the way home from Tennessee, I saw an car accident. Here is a short clip: [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WxDhFCw_sR0[/youtube]

Sherburne NWR Blue Heron Feeding on Stickney Pool

Dave and I went to the Sherburne National Wildlife Refuge on the evening of July 8, 2009. I brought my good video camera to see if there was anything worth filming. We saw several things, but this great blue heron catching his evening fish meal was by...