Preparation advice, evacuation guidance and answers to your questions about air quality, power outages and defending your property.
Berkeley CERT
Posted inCity
Residents ‘evacuated’ in city’s first-ever wildfire drill
A car fire on Tunnel Road quickly spread Sunday into trees and houses, prompting residents to flee. This was only a drill; two more are coming.
Posted inCity
City wildfire evacuation drills start in August (and it’s not too late to join in)
For the first time ever, starting this weekend, the city of Berkeley will hold a series of one-hour wildfire evacuation drills to help community members and first responders practice preparing for an emergency.
Posted inCity
Berkeley City Council votes 5-4 to let police, firefighters stay in Urban Shield
The Berkeley City Council voted 5-4 Monday night to let the city’s first responders, including police, join in this year’s Urban Shield exercise.
Posted inCity
Berkeley mayor calls special meeting to vote again on Urban Shield
Berkeley officials are set to vote Monday afternoon, during a special meeting, on whether to allow city police officers to take part in Urban Shield tactical exercises this year.Â
Posted inCity
Tension, as mayor withdraws vote to ban Berkeley police from 2018 Urban Shield
With questions raised over whether city officials can legally make decisions about police training, Mayor Jesse ArreguÃn pulled his support from a recent vote on Urban Shield.
Posted inCity
Berkeley council may pull police from Urban Shield exercises in 2018
City officials have voted, preliminarily, to keep BPD out of Urban Shield despite protests from the city manager’s office and the police and fire chiefs.
Posted inCity
Watch: Berkeley neighbors take part in active-shooter drill
Despite initial resistance, a neighborhood group held its first active-shooter drill in Berkeley. One participant said she now knows what to do if it happened for real.
Posted inCity
Berkeley residents must take responsibility to reduce fire hazards starting now, fire chiefs say
While 2017 was the most destructive year ever for wildfires, 2018 is already proving worse. Fire officials are encouraging people to clear brush and plan fire evacuation routes.
Posted inCommunity
Berkeley neighbors seek to widen grassroots emergency radio system
A small volunteer group is building a radio communications network so Berkleley neighborhoods can communicate during emergencies when the power grid and internet are down.
Posted inCity
Thursday: Berkeley will drop, cover and hold on with the 2017 ‘ShakeOut’
Take part in a five-minute earthquake drill wherever you are Oct. 19 and start the process of preparing for a disaster.
Posted inCommunity
‘Extreme heat’ prompts fire alert, heat advisory in Berkeley
With several heat warnings in effect over the next few days into Labor Day weekend, Berkeley is preparing for temperatures into the upper 90s, the city announced Thursday.
