CHENNAI: You don’t have to be Tom Cruise to handle an ‘impossible’ flood situation. That’s the idea behind the first ever ‘Crisis Response Volunteer’ (CRV) course slated for January 23 and 24. Only two hours long, four sessions will be organised by Survival Instincts, an NGO that trains regular folks on how to react to medical emergencies and natural disasters.
A month since our city was inundated, with so many still recuperating from the damage, motivation has never been higher to learn how to manage such a calamity.
“We’ve been planning this since mid-December,” says M Premraj, a training manager with the organisation. “And from the registrations pouring in, we’re expecting a good 500 people on each day.”
As a part of the training, demonstrative exercises will be conducted on how to prevent drowning and what to do when stuck in a building. “Simulated rescue operations such as how to handle someone with a broken spine, will be conducted,” Premraj explains. As part of relief efforts, this team also advised disaster management teams and provided equipment, including floatable spine boards and high beam flashlights.
Most of the training will be conducted by founder of Survival Instincts, Anoop Madhavan, who is an experienced logistics scientist in the field of disaster relief for the United States Army Corps of Engineers and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
Anoop says that anyone can be a part of the workshop. An impressive resume is not a factor. The only thing you need, trainers say, is the willingness to learn, and a presence of mind. With teens and 60-year-olds going through the CRV curriculum side-by-side, registrations are open to all.
For details, call 9176693012 or visit their page on Facebook.