WHERE there’s smoke, there’s fire and where there’s fuel, there’s Earl, one of NSW Fire and Rescue’s accelerant detection dogs, and he proved he’s got quite the nose for fumes on Saturday.
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As a part of the Regional Firefighting Championships in Tamworth at the weekend, Earl’s champion sniff was put to the test
"We put one millionth of a litre of petrol on Kevin Anderson’s shoe and then the dog came along and found it straight away, without any trouble,” Fire and Rescue NSW and Tamworth-based Superintendent Tom Cooper said.
Earl’s official title is “canine accelerant detection dog”, whose main role is sniffing out suspected arson.
"We’ve got three dogs in NSW and they’re available to go any anywhere in the state,” Superintendent Cooper said.
“They help us with any fire investigation in the state especially if they suspect arson.
“The dogs are trained to sniff out any accelerant whether it’s fuel, diesel, petrol, anything.”
While Saturday’s task was a piece of pie for Earl, it’s all a part of ongoing training for the detective dog.
"It’s constant training, and each dog has its own handler and they live with them,” he said.
We put one millionth of a litre of petrol on Kevin Anderson’s shoe and then the dog came along and found it straight away
- Superintendent Tom Cooper
