A.C. Carse

Sometimes when a youngster sees someone in need of help, they look to an adult to take care of the situation. But that is not the case for one young boy who lives in Tyler County. When he saw someone who needed help, he sprung into action.

A.C. Carse, helped save a man’s life due to the CERT training he had back in 2007. When he and his mother were leaving a New Martinsville grocery store back in November, the teen noticed an elderly man lying on the ground beside an open car door. The 85 year old man had fallen and hit his head, and was bleeding badly. As a CERT member for over two years, Carse was well-prepared to assist. He kept the man still, called 911, helped the man control the bleeding and stayed with him until the ambulance arrived.

He became one of the first and youngest members trained for the Tyler County CERT. This class began with 65 people in the first training session, including A.C.’s mom, dad, and brother.

CERT is Community Emergency Response Team program that educates people about disaster preparedness for hazards that may impact their area and trains them in basis disaster response skills, such as fire safety, light search and rescue, team organization, and disaster medical operations. Using the training learned in the classroom and during exercises, these members can assist others in their neighborhood or workplace following an event when professional responders are not immediately available to help. CERT members also are encouraged to support emergency response agencies by taking a more active role in emergency preparedness projects in their community.

Since the incident, Carse has been volunteering with Tyler County Emergency Management to help start Teen CERT training at his school. To show his enthusiasm about the class, he has encouraged more than 40 of his classmates to sign up for the Teen CERT training.

The goal of Teen CERT training is to include the group in the school’s emergency response plans. The students interested will be given special tasks such as assisting special needs students during school evacuations.

CERT members in Tyler County are a highly trained group and many of the members have received advanced training in mass care triage, first aid, CPR, AED, the National Weather Service’s SKYWARN program, and decontamination shelter setup.

Carse’s training and quick thinking proved to be invaluable. When asked about his training and his participation in the CERT program, his response was clear. “CERT gives you the ability to help people.” His story will be also be featured in the CERT National Newsletter in Washington D.C.