In order to reinforce the Search and Rescue area of the USAR Vallarta Group, the Civil Protection, and Fire Department began the process of preparing and training a two-month-old Labrador puppy as an officer of the Canine Unit for the search and rescue.
Currently, the USAR K9 Canine Unit has two dogs trained for the search and rescue, a 3-year-old Dutch shepherd named Yeicov and a 2-year-old Belgian shepherd named Zar, who receive daily training to take action when required.
First Firefighter Diego Rodríguez Quiñones, in charge of the K9 Canine Unit and trainer, reported that due to the need to have a binomial for the recovery of bodies, a two-month-old Labrador puppy was recently received, which is already being prepared to perform this function as a canine officer, even with the endorsement and supervision of the USAR Jalisco Group, adding that the intention is to have at least two K9’s for these tasks.
The USAR (Urban Search and Rescue) Group, headed by officer Raúl López Fletes in Vallarta, is a specialized search and rescue cell or team normally composed of 4 or 6 officers. It is currently made up of 28 elements, divided into four cells and a team for the Incident Command System (ICS) that organizes an activation when a disaster occurs.
Their specialty is intervening in collapsed structures to save lives, but also in other types of situations or emergencies where their preparation, capacity, experience, and skills are required for which they were trained.
