For Tony Richey, the search last week for a Monroe County woman swept away by floodwaters illustrates the increasing need for trained volunteers to respond to such incidents.

Richey coordinates the Citizens Corps, the umbrella organization encompassing the Community Emergency Response Team and Medical Reserve Corps volunteer groups overseen by the Barren River District Health Department.

Formerly emergency management director in Barren County for more than a decade, Richey has overseen the Citizen Corps program for nearly two years and is trying to get it established in all 10 counties that make up the Barren River Area Development District.

“The major issue is getting credentialed volunteers,” Richey said. “We had 300 or more people in Monroe County involved in the search on Saturday. When you start trying to manage that many people, it’s a major undertaking.”

Especially when only a few have completed the CERT training that prepares them for disaster response and search-and-rescue operations.

Richey said those volunteering for the CERT program go through more than 30 hours of training over a 10-week period, learning how to treat injuries, stop severe bleeding and prepare for disasters, among other skills.

With no CERT in place in Monroe County, Richey had to coordinate many of the volunteers himself. While he was encouraged to see local residents turn out to help with the search – which ended when the woman’s body was found about five miles downstream from where her car was swept away – Richey said the absence of credentialed volunteers can complicate emergency response efforts.

“We can always use more volunteers,” Richey said. “We would like to have at least one active emergency response team in each county.”

Only six of the 10 BRADD counties have active CERT teams that can supplement the work of professional emergency responders and often arrive on the scene of a disaster before those firefighters and paramedics.

“The goal is to do the greatest good for the most people in a short amount of time,” said Janarae Conway, disaster preparedness director for the Barren River District Health Department, “so that when the professionals get there they can continue the job.”

That was the idea behind the Citizen Corps when it was established as part of President George W. Bush’s USA Freedom Corps, which was created in 2002 in the wake of the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

The Citizens Corps fell under the Department of Homeland Security and received some DHS funding initially. But, since 2012, the Citizens Corps program is no longer part of the Homeland Security Grant Program, complicating efforts to recruit and train volunteers.

“Funding and volunteers are our greatest needs,” Richey said. “It’s hard to get people to volunteer like they used to. They either can’t afford to do it or they don’t have the time.”

“Volunteerism is down,” said Conway, who has been with the health department for 19 years. “I don’t know what the reason is. We depend very much on finding that one person in each county who will volunteer to be the Citizens Corps coordinator.”

Both Conway and Richey said efforts to keep the Citizens Corps program viable are continuing. Training was held recently to establish a CERT in Metcalfe County, and training will begin soon in Simpson County.

“We’re trying to figure out how to keep the program going,” Conway said. “If those volunteers aren’t there, then there’s a delay in getting to the site (of an emergency).”

Conway said a new CERT training could be scheduled in Warren County as soon as March, and she would like to see a good response.

“I believe every citizen should take the CERT training,” she said. “You’ll be better prepared if something happens.”

More information about the Citizens Corps program and CERT training can be found at the BRADD Citizens Corps Facebook page or by calling the health department at 270-781-8039.