(Photo: submitted by the City of Moncton)
The Moncton Fire Department is welcoming a new member to the team who is unlike any other.
Two-year-old Labrador Retriever Kernel will work with Deputy Fire Prevention Chief Charles Leblanc.
Kernel is a certified Accelerant Detection Canine who takes over for Magic, another accelerant detection canine who was with the department for 10 and a half years.
K9 units help collect evidence in fire investigations, especially is arson is suspected.
The sense of smell in canines is between 10,000 to 100,000 times stronger than humans.
They can detect fuel and odours from fire scenes that humans wouldn’t notice.
“With the retirement of K9 Magic, we look forward to welcoming Kernel to assist in origin and cause of fires investigations in New Brunswick and the other Maritime provinces” said Fire Chief Conrad Landry.
LeBlanc and canine partner Kernel have recently been certified through the Maine State Police under the standards of the Maine Criminal Justice Academy. The certification was awarded following 200 hours of training at the New Hampshire Fire Training Academy in Concord, New Hampshire. All costs of the training, including for the dog, are covered by State Farm Insurance.
Through the State Farm Arson Dog program, over 435 accelerant detection canine (ADC) teams have been trained in the United States and Canada.
