Know where your teams are after the cell network goes down.
CertMesh gives your CERT team live locations, chat and ICS forms between the field and incident command. When there's cell service, it uses that. When there isn't, messages go over small license-free mesh radios the volunteers carry. Nobody has to set anything up on their phone to make that happen.
By the second hour of a real activation, command usually isn't sure where everyone is.
The cell network goes
After a hurricane or a tornado, cell and internet service can be out across the whole area. Phones still work as flashlights and cameras.
Most of your people aren't radio operators
A few members may have ham licenses. Most don't, and short-range handhelds don't reach across a damaged neighborhood.
Check-ins slip
Teams call in on a schedule. In between, command is guessing.
Not much to learn, which matters when people use it twice a year.
Scan in at staging
Staging is usually a parking lot full of people asking where to go, so check-in has to be quick. Command puts up a QR code, volunteers scan it with the CertMesh app, and they're on the incident. The app remembers their details for next time.
Go do the assignment
If there's cell service, messages use it. If there isn't, they hop between the small mesh radios the team carries, which can cover miles that way. The app handles this. Volunteers don't pick a network or flip a switch.
Command watches the map
Everyone shows up on one map with their last position and status. Reports, requests and calls for help come into one inbox.
Messages don't quietly disappear.
CertMesh keeps track of what's been sent, what's still on its way and what has arrived, whatever the network is doing. That matters afterward too, when someone has to piece together who was told what and when.
What the command post sees
For volunteers, it's mostly texting.
Short messages, typed the way people already text. To report a downed line or a blocked road, a volunteer taps one button and it goes on the map at their spot. The buttons are large and the screen is high contrast, so it's still readable outside in direct sun. You won't need a class to teach it, and the person who joined last month can use it.
The ICS forms still have to exist.
The forms aren't going anywhere, and somebody will ask for them after the incident. So CertMesh uses the ones you already know. Field teams can file structured reports like damage assessments from their phones. At command, the scribe turns incoming messages into ICS forms with a few taps, much like turning radio traffic into paper. A person reviews each one before it's filed.
If the EOC wants to see it too
When the command post has any internet link (satellite, a hotspot, whatever is working that day), CertMesh passes reports and requests up to your EOC. Requests for supplies can come back down to the team that needs them.
Why not just use the county's system?
Most emergency management software is bought and run by county IT, and it assumes someone full time is looking after it. A CERT team usually has a volunteer coordinator who took the job this year and may hand it off next year, and not much training time before the next drill. CertMesh is meant to be set up by that person.
One price, and it's on this page.
It's a flat price per team, however many volunteers you have, so the grant money can still go to radios and gear. You don't have to get on a sales call to find out what it costs.
Need a number for a grant application? We'll send a written quote.
- Unlimited volunteers and incidents
- Field app for iPhone and Android
- Command console, live map and forms
- Offline maps for your area
- Extra storage free for 90 days during a declared disaster
Common questions
Do our volunteers need a radio license?
No. The radios are license-free, so anyone on your roster can carry one, not just the members who have a ham ticket.
What equipment do we need?
Volunteers use their own phones. For coverage when there's no service, each person pairs a small off-the-shelf mesh radio with the app. We'll tell you which models work. You can buy them anywhere.
Do we need an IT person to set it up?
No, we host it. Your coordinator enters the roster, and volunteers join an incident by scanning a QR code. If your agency has to keep data in-house, you can run your own copy instead.
How far does the radio network reach?
It depends on how many radios are out. Each one passes messages along to the next, so range grows as your team spreads out, and a message can travel miles over several hops. A radio mounted on a parked vehicle makes a good relay.
Are messages kept on record?
Yes. Treat them like radio logs and paper forms: messages and reports are logged and may be part of the public record. The app reminds volunteers of that while they write.
Can we use grant funds to pay for it?
Possibly. Many CERT teams pay for equipment and capability through state and federal programs, so ask your program manager what fits. We can give you a quote and a plain-language description for the application.
Try it at a drill first.
Set up your team this week and run it at your next exercise. It's a lot easier to find the gaps then than during a real activation.