Courses and Events

The Communications Technician (COMT) course trains personnel to serve as communications technicians during all-hazards emergency operations or planned events. Since 2010, the Department of Homeland Security Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (DHS CISA) has conducted COMT courses across the nation and trained more than 3,375 students in this course.
Description
This class provides introductory and refresher training for the NIMS ICS COMT position. It introduces public safety professionals and support staff to various communications concepts and technologies including interoperable communications solutions, LMR communications, satellite, telephone, data, and computer technologies used in incident response and planned events. Participants develop the essential core competencies required for performing the duties of the COMT in an all-hazards incident, including responsibilities while operating in a local, regional, or State-level All-Hazards Incident Management Team.

The course is instructor-led and supports learning through discussion, lecture, participation in multiple activities, and hands-on lab work to explain processes used for establishment and operation of the technical communications resources for an incident or planned event. The course provides a realistic, hands-on approach to mastering the tasks and skills of a COMT. It is designed for emergency response professionals and support personnel in all disciplines who have a technical communications background.
This course is five days long and is limited to 16 students.

Course Dates and Location
This COMT course is offered July 25 – July 29 at the Law Enforcement Center at 701 W 29th Street,
South Sioux City, NE. There is no charge for this training, and course materials will be provided by
DHS CISA. All travel/per diem costs are the responsibility of the individual student.

Class Prerequisites
To attend this course, applicants must have the following prerequisites:
• Have a technical communications background
• Have an awareness of fundamental public safety communications technology
• Completion of the following FEMA independent study (IS) training courses (current versions required, the letter after the course number is significant):

• IS-100, Introduction to the Incident Command System, ICS 100
• IS-200, Basic Incident Command System for Initial Response, ICS-200
• IS-700, An Introduction to the National Incident Management System
• IS-800, National Response Framework, An Introduction

• Familiarity with pre-course reading materials found at https://www.cisa.gov/safecom/comu-training-resources. Click on “All-Hazard Communications Technician (COMT) Pre-course Study Guide”.
Course Dates and Location

Registration
Applicants should submit scanned copies of all prerequisite Certificates of Completions for IS
prerequisite courses, to Deanna Hagberg at dhagberg@southsiouxcity.org

Copies of prerequisite documentation which verify applicants have met the prerequisites and are
eligible to participate in the course must be submitted for review by July 20th.
Registration is not complete until all documentation has been received and verified by Deanna
Hagberg, Dakota County Emergency Management Director. Admittance is limited to 16 qualified
applicants. If more than 16 qualified personnel apply, final determination of student attendance will
be announced by Deanna Hagberg.

Click here to register

This 16 Hour course is designed to meet the required objectives of NIMS.  The class builds on the prerequisites IS 100, 200, 700, 800 and ICS 300 courses.

Who should attend:

 All Federal/State/Local/Tribal/Private Sector & Nongovernmental personnel should take ICS-400, including those persons who will serve as command or general staff in an ICS organization, select department heads with multi-agency coordination system responsibilities, area commanders, emergency managers, and multi-agency coordination system/emergency operations center managers.

Click here to register

Flyer

This 16 Hour course is designed to meet the required objectives of NIMS.
The class builds on the prerequisites IS 100, 200, 700, 800 and ICS 300 courses.

Who should attend:
All Federal/State/Local/Tribal/Private Sector & Nongovernmental personnel should take ICS-400, including those persons who will serve as command or general staff in an ICS organization, select department heads with multi-agency coordination system responsibilities, area commanders, emergency managers, and multi-agency coordination system/emergency operations center managers.

Click here to register

COURSE DESCRIPTION: Developed by responders, for responders, this is the foundational, patented system that started it all – This one-day class, taught in a straight forward easy to understand methodology, takes the typically complex world of Hazardous materials and simplifies it for street level< responder. Each participant receives a set of laminated Above the Line/Below© charts which allows them to efficiently size-up any chemical in minutes, determining the hazards, meters and PPE required.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:
The HazMatIQ 4 – step system consists of:
Step 1) Revolutionary 10 – second “Above the line – Below the line” chemical size-up.
Step 2) Verifying/adjusting initial size-up using HMIQ Charts and a reference source.
Step 3) Choosing the appropriate meter(s) and protective equipment
Step 4) Operating safely in the hot zone based on mission

Flyer

To register, email Alyssa Sanders at alyssa.sanders@nebraska.gov