Report by Michael Scott SDF Canine Handler and El Cajon Fire Department Division Chief/Fire MarshalOn December 12, 2004 a section of bluff collapsed at the Torey Pines State Beach. This isn’t the first time—several sections of the San Diego coastline are subject to bluff collapse. There have been a few …
August – September, 2004 – Hurricane CharleyOn a Friday afternoon at 3:56 p.m. the strongest storm to hit Florida in a dozen years slammed ashore with winds of up to 145 mph, leaving an 80-mile path of destruction in its wake. By 11 p.m. the call was out to SDF …
High drive! What’s the downside of having too much energy? Well, if you’re a rambunctious Chocolate Lab puppy hoping to become a guide dog for the blind, you just might have to find another occupation! And that’s just what happened to MoDoc, a.k.a. Doc. It all started in 1999. Doc, …
December 26, 2003A few days before Christmas, SDF teams were deployed to the Waterman Canyon wilderness near San Bernardino, California. This was a site where devastating fires increased vulnerability for flooding and mudslides. The teams included: Carrie Henger & Doc (L.A. County Fire), Russell Tao & Harry (Montebello Fire), and John Thomas & …
December 22, 2003Santa Barbara firefighter Howard Orr and his canine partner Duke responded to a 6.5 earthquake that rocked the central coast region of California. “Waiting for the call was the hardest…the excitement and frustration of watching it on TV, knowing this was a perfect opportunity to help,” said Howard. …
June 20, 2003 A Los Angeles neighborhood was thrown into chaos when 28 freight cars went flying off their tracks, crashing into homes and causing at least 11 injuries. The L.A. County Fire Department immediately called in SDF canine-firefighter teams to search for survivors. Within an hour of the derailment, three …
Captain Rick Lee of Sacramento City Fire and his partner Ana, a rescued Golden Retriever, were one of SDF’s very first search teams. In addition to being on call for major state and national disasters, Rick and Ana (like other SDF search teams) serve their community by responding to local emergencies. Some …
Chapter 1 – The call we hope to never get My name is Richard Lee, Fire Captain with the City of Sacramento, California for 21 years. On September 11, 2001, I had been a member of the California Urban Search and Rescue Task Force 7 as a Canine Search Specialist …
September 11, 2001On September 11th, America witnessed the worst terrorist attack in our nation’s history when the World Trade Center was destroyed and 2,819 people were killed. A call was sent out nationwide by the Federal Government for the most highly trained canine search teams to help at the disaster …
Gus was a Golden Retriever born on April 23, 1997. He was purchased to be a hunting dog and was sent to a trainer. Gus did not react well to this kind of training, and his owner was displeased, so Gus was taken to a Golden Retriever Rescue Group and left …
