SOUTH PADRE ISLAND — Soon, a new, four-legged firefighter will be on the job.
Island firefighters will have a K-9 partner on their side to help them investigate fires.
“We are very excited about adding this great program to our community,” SPI Fire Chief Doug Fowler said.
“This team will be used to investigate fires, but also provide community outreach programs and education seminars on fire prevention and safety.”
The South Padre Island Fire Department received a scholarship from State Farm to add an arson dog as a community and regional asset.
The dog will begin serving the community in May 2018.
Accelerant detection canines, also known as arson dogs, are trained to sniff out minute traces of accelerants — such as gasoline, lighter fluid, kerosene and turpentine — that may have been used to start a fire.
Due to these dogs’ keen sense of smell, they have the ability to work a fire scene in about 20 minutes. It would normally take a fire investigator hours to locate an accelerant.
Their sense of smell is thousands of times more acute than a human’s.
According to Fowler, this program cannot run long-term without continued grant funding and donations.
Fowler said the cost of acquiring the arson dog is covered, but the ongoing costs of dog food, routine veterinary services, training aids and training props for the new four-legged firefighter are still needed.
To help make the arson dog program a success, consider a donation through https://www.gofundme.com/spifdarsondog.
