City of Oakland California

Do you know what to do in the event of an earthquake, fire, flood, chemical accident or other emergency situation? Are you and your neighbors prepared to be on your own for seven to 10 days after a major disaster?

CORE is a free training program for individuals, neighborhood groups and community-based organizations in Oakland. The underlying premise is that a major disaster will overwhelm first responders leaving many citizens on their own for the first seven to 10 days after the emergency.

CORE teaches self-reliance skills and helps neighborhoods establish response teams to take care of the neighborhood until professional emergency personnel arrive.

Benefits

• Develop self-confidence and peace of mind as you learn practical information and learn hands-on life-saving skills
• Build community as you develop and share your skills and resources to protect yourself, your family and home, and your neighborhood
• Create a lifeline between your family and neighbors, and the City’s emergency responders

CORE training will help you increase the safety and well-being of your family and neighborhood.

Find out more:

• About Core
• History  
• Funding  
• Advisory Task Force
   

CORE classes educate and empower citizens. Through lecture and demonstration, CORE instructors actively engage citizens with informative and interactive training to develop self-reliance skills and neighborhood organizing skills. In addition to teaching the basic emergency preparedness and response curriculum, instructors adapt the curriculum to the special needs of the elderly or disabled; residents of apartments, condominiums and co-housing complexes and public or private sector employees.

CORE manuals are available in Spanish and Chinese to facilitate training in culturally diverse communities. Bilingual translators and interpreters assist to provide CORE to other language groups in Oakland.

• CORE I
• CORE II
• CORE III
• Additional Training Opportunities
• Recertification
• Schedule of Classes & Events
• REGISTER HERE
   

Through CORE training, it is our intention to facilitate the development of active CORE groups throughout Oakland who are organized, empowered and involved in the health, safety and well-being of their neighborhood.

Would you know what to do if an earthquake ten times more powerful than Loma Prieta rocked Oakland?
How would you respond if a wild land fire threatened your neighborhood?
Do you have an emergency response plan for your neighborhood?

Prepared neighborhoods can mean the difference between life and death for individuals and their families. Organized neighborhoods are prepared neighborhoods and can work more easily together to:

• Find shelter, food and water
• Protect each other’s property
• Free people who are trapped
• Offer first aid

CORE-trained neighborhoods can demonstrate cohesiveness and competency because they have identified the human and material resources within their neighborhood to respond to and recover from emergency situations.

"Understand and know that with clear vision, positive attitude and a focused plan of action, a small group of committed citizens can transform their neighborhood and create a safe, beautiful and empowered community. Together, in shared purpose with others, you can make a profound difference." - Harriet Wright, Former CORE Coordinator
 

• Organizing your Neighborhood CORE Group  
• Maintaining your CORE Team  
• Conducting a Neighborhood Exercise
• Citywide Emergency Response Exercise
• Neighborhood Emergency Supply Pack (NESP)

Resources and Support Materials have been developed for your use through the CORE Program. Use these resources with your CORE group. You may also modify them or develop your own.

• Support Materials
• Pet Preparedness
• Links to Related Websites

CORE provides individuals with important life-saving skills and information, but an organized group of CORE-trained volunteers can be much more effective than a single person providing emergency response for a neighborhood.

The Oakland Fire Department, Office of Emergency Services recognizes that many CORE volunteers are not yet members of organized CORE neighborhoods, so we present opportunities for CORE volunteers throughout the city to find and network with each other in hopes of either creating new or joining existing CORE Groups.

In addition to occasional live networking events, we offer two ongoing networking opportunities in the form of an online discussion group and a roster of CORE Group Leaders.

Please click the links below for more information about these networking avenues.

• Online CORE Discussion Group - reach out electronically to other CORE volunteers citywide
• CORE Group Leader Roster - organized by geographical region to you can identify and contact a leader in your area

CORE Training Videos

• CORE Program Overview (5:00)
  Brief overview of the CORE training program.
  English subtitles  Chinese subtitles  Spanish subtitles
   
• Introduction to CORE, aka CORE II Video (13:31)
  Brief history of CORE, and demonstration of an organized CORE neighborhood group in action.
  English subtitles  Chinese subtitles  Spanish subtitles
   
• CORE Neighborhood Emergency Communications Overview (6:51)
  Introduction to communicating with your organized neighborhood group.  Review the difference between requesting immediate help from professional first responders, and reporting your status to the City’s Emergency Operations Center.
  English subtitles  Chinese subtitles  Spanish subtitles
   
• Introduction to Two-Way Radio Communication (6:15)
  Learn how to operate a two-way radio (“walkie talkie”).
  English subtitles  Chinese subtitles  Spanish subtitles

Public Service Announcements

• CORE Citywide Exercise Promo 2012 Featuring Oakland Mayor Jean Quan (0:57)
   
• How to Strap a Water Heater by GGASHI (5:03)
   
• CORE Commercial (0:35)
   
• Oakland Medical Reserve Corps Pet Safety Commercial (0:35)
   
• 911 Registry Public Service Announcement (1:02)
   
• Know Your Neighbors Public Service Announcement (0:31)
   
• Know the Code Public Service Announcement (0:31)
   
• Former Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums CORE Public Service Announcement (0:15)
   
• Former Oakland A's Nick Swisher CORE Public Service Announcement (0:30)
   
• Former Oakland A's Jack Cust CORE Public Service Announcement (0:30)