Residents of Weston Lakes will soon have a new way to let first responders know they are safe – or need help – during an emergency.
During this week’s meeting, the Weston Lakes City Council unveiled a new door hangar that will be distributed to serve as a signal to first responders checking the city in the wake of a storm or other disaster situation.
One side of the placard say’s “I’m OK” in green print. The other side spells out “HELP” in red lettering.
The door-hangars will be distributed to Weston Lakes residents by that city’s Community Emergency Response Team members.
“After the mayor declares an emergency, the door-hangars will let our CERT members know if someone, particularly special needs residents, are OK or if they need help,” Alderman Trent Thomas explained.
A thousand of the placards have been purchased and will be distributed in the near future.
Additionally, Alderman Clifton Aldrich, who also serves as the city’s emergency management coordinator, announced another CERT training class will be held Aug. 6-8. To date, 15 Weston Lakes residents have signed up to take the class.
“This class will fulfill our CERT team training requirements,” Aldrich said.
Also, the city has purchased a number of small flashing red lights for CERT members to attach to their clothing so they can be more easily seen during periods of poor visibility.
CERT members are also been issued specially-designed green T-shirts so they can be easily identified.
