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| Winter Highway (photo by V.A. McMillan) |
Over on The GOOD Plan
Blog (https://thegoodplanblog.blogspot.com/2023/01/cert-lsar-table-top-exercise-game-board.html) the discussion has begun on CERT SIZE-UP for Light Search and Rescue
(LSAR) TTX game board. This post will look deeper into the game board and how
it can be developed and modified to meet the needs of CERT units for both the CERT
Basics and monthly training.
Here is the TTX game
board template I designed that CERT trainers and team leaders should be able to
duplicate for their units and training programs:
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| The TTX Game Board Template (Click to enlarge) |
The first obvious difference
from the game boards shared on The GOOD Plan Blog and the TTX template, is the
map and its replacement by a PowerPoint “map” icon. If a CERT unit was to
duplicate this template for use with their CERT Unit, they would insert a map
of their own neighbourhood to ensure meaningful training with relevant
geography. CERT is all about neighbours helping neighbours. So, it makes sense
to train where you live and live where you train. This builds confidence in
knowing what and where you will be responding when disaster strikes.
The game board is created
in PowerPoint and requires creating a custom sized slide that is 36” wide by 24”
tall (90 cm X 60 cm). The rest is just text boxes that are outlined. So, let’s
go around the template and chat about each component and the thinking when I
designed this. Starting in the top left corner…see Figure 1:
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| Figure 1 |
The information captured
in the top left corner of the game board will be the physical events components
of the TTX. For items like wind, or fire, or floods/waves; there will be a
direction of origin (the Threat Vector) in this circle the direction will be
drawn as an arrow. Next the Threat Type will be identified at the start or once
the threat has been identified. Circle one or more event types that have/are
impacted/impacting the CERT neighbourhood. Then we drop to the next text box for a few
more details. Is this TTX starting in the day or at night, circle the
appropriate word. Same with whether this is a weekend event or weekday event.
From a CERT perspective this will help identify the expected occupancy level in
the neighbourhood. Then fill in the start time, using 2400-hour time. 0600 =
6am, 1800 = 6pm. Now for events that may have meteorological clues before the
event, like some wind events. There can be high temperatures and rising
humidity that are pre-cursors to the weather event. So, for the TTX the game
master may want to inject specific weather data to help build awareness in the
CERT participants. If a wind event has high temperature say above +35C at the
start with relative humidity (RH) of 84% and rising, and then the wind event
hits and the temperature drops to +20C with 97% RH, over time the CERT members
may begin to see a pattern of local weather events and aftereffects. Finally, the
note section allows for attaching any other game notes or player observations,
which will be discussed during the TTX debrief.
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| Figure 2 |
Figure 2 is your CERT
team roster. First player on this list wins, they are the SAR Team Lead!!
Congrats, this player gets to be boss for this TTX. Game masters you can either
preload the roster with CERT student names or as CERT members arrive at the
designated rally point the roster gets filled in on a first-come, first on the
list basis. Realistically, every CERT member should get practice at every role
or position to build familiarity and depth to the CERT team. The TTX template
game board is currently preloaded with the SAR Team Lead, two LSAR teams and a
rescue team. Depending on the scenario used by the game master the roster could
be left blank, and roles and positions will be determined by the SAR Team Lead in
response to the nature of the event, or pre-determined to speed up the game
cycle of training, like in the CERT Basics course.
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| Figure 3 |
The remaining nine boxes
are pretty self explanatory, see Figure 3, these are the nine-steps of CERT
SIZE-UP. While this TTX template was focused on LSAR tasks, a CERT trainer or
CERT Team Lead could modify this for use in any CERT scenario employing the nine-step
SIZE-UP process. In this case, the game master will present the CERT team with
challenges or answers to their questions as the CERT team works through the
scenario. Game masters may wish to develop a master list of event sequence for a
complex TTX, so as not to get lost during the exercise. The nine-step CERT SIZE-UP
is not necessarily needed to be memorized so the headings and clues on the game
board can be used to guide the learning of the CERT students and refresh the memory
of CERT team members as they work through the TTX. The complexity of the
scenario would determine how many cycles through the SIZE-UP would occur before
“END EX” has been achieved.
I hope that provides a
good walk through of this CERT TTX game board template. I will get an
opportunity to put this concept into practice in a few weeks to see how well it
worked and what improvements are needed.
Until next time…Get out
there and train!!!
Even if it is only on a
game board conducting a TTX!
Mountainman.
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