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7 June 2024
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Tyne and Wear search and rescue dog Frankie gets guard of honour as she retires from fire service
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Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service's first full time search and rescue dog has been given a guard of honour after her retirement. Seven-year-old Belgian Malinois Frankie became the first ever of the breed to be assigned as an Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) dog in 2018, after Dogs Trust brought her from Ireland, where she had been living as a stray. Over the past six years, she has developed a "formidable" partnership with her handler, watch manager Steve Carr.
Washington-based Frankie was given a guard of honour and presented with a certificate recognising her six years of sterling service as she officially began her retirement on 30 May 2024. Frankie has been a valued member of Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service’s (TWFRS) USAR team, which is based at their Washington headquarters.
As Frankie made her way through the guard of honour she was given a rousing round of applause before Carr was presented with the framed certificate on her behalf.
Carr, 48, said, “Frankie has been a valued member of the team and I have loved every minute of my time with her. She was originally homeless and wandering the streets of Ireland before being taken in by the Dogs Trust Darlington Rehoming Centre which is where we got Frankie from. As a first time handler I got the training and Frankie qualified for her role really quickly as she picked things up very well. It has been awesome to build such a bond with Frankie and she is now one of my family.”
Frankie’s duties included locating people under rubble in collapsed buildings, finding casualties trapped in transport incidents, and searching for missing people in woodland environments.
She locates people by detecting the scent of exhaled human breath.
Carr said, “Frankie has always been one of the most important tools in our USAR armoury as she can find and indicate a casualty’s location in minutes. “This is something that could potentially take the team hours, if not days, if the person was unconscious, unresponsive or even entombed. Frankie's role has been imperative to firefighter safety as she can navigate rubble and collapsed structures without causing the potential of secondary collapse, endangering firefighters and the trapped casualties.”
The guard of honour and presentation was also attended by Deputy Chief Fire Officer Stewart Nicholson. He said, “One of the most important elements of the Fire Service is teamwork, especially in some of the most hazardous environments our USAR team encounters. Over the past six years, Frankie has played an important role in that team, and her specialist skills have always been second to none. Watch manager Carr and Frankie have developed a formidable partnership that has been a credit to TWFRS. We all wish Frankie a happy and healthy retirement.”
Ordinarily Frankie would have had another couple of years of service but has had to retire earlier than normal after being diagnosed with hip dysplasia, a condition which allows the hip joint to become partially dislocated.
Frankie will now spend the rest of her days as part of Carr’s family but will still return from time to time to the TWFRS headquarters to catch-up with her former colleagues.
Carr said, “My son Jamie is going to be looking after her and so she will be spending time putting her feet up at our caravan and going for some relaxing walks. She is a working dog and so will miss that working environment and so I will still bring her into the headquarters to see the rest of the team.”
Frankie’s replacement has already been found with four-year-old Merlin already trained and ready to take on the baton as a vital part of the USAR team.
Sources: Sunderland Echo
Washington-based Frankie was given a guard of honour and presented with a certificate recognising her six years of sterling service as she officially began her retirement on 30 May 2024. Frankie has been a valued member of Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service’s (TWFRS) USAR team, which is based at their Washington headquarters.
As Frankie made her way through the guard of honour she was given a rousing round of applause before Carr was presented with the framed certificate on her behalf.
Carr, 48, said, “Frankie has been a valued member of the team and I have loved every minute of my time with her. She was originally homeless and wandering the streets of Ireland before being taken in by the Dogs Trust Darlington Rehoming Centre which is where we got Frankie from. As a first time handler I got the training and Frankie qualified for her role really quickly as she picked things up very well. It has been awesome to build such a bond with Frankie and she is now one of my family.”
Frankie’s duties included locating people under rubble in collapsed buildings, finding casualties trapped in transport incidents, and searching for missing people in woodland environments.
She locates people by detecting the scent of exhaled human breath.
Carr said, “Frankie has always been one of the most important tools in our USAR armoury as she can find and indicate a casualty’s location in minutes. “This is something that could potentially take the team hours, if not days, if the person was unconscious, unresponsive or even entombed. Frankie's role has been imperative to firefighter safety as she can navigate rubble and collapsed structures without causing the potential of secondary collapse, endangering firefighters and the trapped casualties.”
The guard of honour and presentation was also attended by Deputy Chief Fire Officer Stewart Nicholson. He said, “One of the most important elements of the Fire Service is teamwork, especially in some of the most hazardous environments our USAR team encounters. Over the past six years, Frankie has played an important role in that team, and her specialist skills have always been second to none. Watch manager Carr and Frankie have developed a formidable partnership that has been a credit to TWFRS. We all wish Frankie a happy and healthy retirement.”
Ordinarily Frankie would have had another couple of years of service but has had to retire earlier than normal after being diagnosed with hip dysplasia, a condition which allows the hip joint to become partially dislocated.
Frankie will now spend the rest of her days as part of Carr’s family but will still return from time to time to the TWFRS headquarters to catch-up with her former colleagues.
Carr said, “My son Jamie is going to be looking after her and so she will be spending time putting her feet up at our caravan and going for some relaxing walks. She is a working dog and so will miss that working environment and so I will still bring her into the headquarters to see the rest of the team.”
Frankie’s replacement has already been found with four-year-old Merlin already trained and ready to take on the baton as a vital part of the USAR team.
Sources: Sunderland Echo