A CANINE unit (K9) is much needed for emergencies in the northern part of the country,  Fire and Rescue Department’s K9 unit chief Donny Chap said, adding there exists only one such team in Kuala Lumpur for search and rescue operations on the peninsula.

He said that when an incident occurs up north, it takes his team hours to travel to the site.  

At the same time, he also said they would also need more dog handlers and trainers for the new unit.

“These are some of the issues that have affected our operations when we have to travel far.  

“So, it is important to have a unit in the north. This will make it easier to provide assistance for any incidents or operations,” he told The Malaysian Insight in an interview. 

Last year the K9 unit handled more than 200 operations nationwide, where about 125 of them were on fire investigations and the rest on search and rescue operations. 

Currently there are 33 dogs under the K9 unit, with 22 dogs stationed in Kuala Lumpur, five in Sabah and six in Sarawak.  

He said that the number of dogs needed for the northern unit would depend on how frequent operations are carried out there. 

“The need for a northern unit is very crucial because there are also many cases of fire, drowning, people getting lost, deaths, landslides and others there.

“It could be more than 10 dogs and handlers that will be needed for the unit.” 

If approved, he said, the northern unit will assist those in Penang, Kedah, Perlis and any other areas with high demand.

Earlier this week, department director-general Mohammad Hamdan Wahid said his team is studying the proposal to add a K9 unit in the northern area. 

He also said that this year, the department will get 12 more dogs after getting the approval of the Economic Planning Unit. 

This, he said, was after the dogs did well during in search and rescue efforts at the Batang Kali landslide area last month. 

Hamdan said that the handling package, including training for a dog, costs a lot – around RM400,000 to RM500,000. 

Chap meanwhile said the rescue dogs would also suffer when they travel far.

“The dogs can’t travel for more than an hour because when the vehicle shakes, it brings them discomfort and could affect their health.  

“So, we have to make several stops for the dogs to stretch their legs, usually between 20 and 30 minutes.” 

He added that they also need proper vehicles to transport the dogs as the old vehicles usually shake badly. 

“The unit has five four-wheel drive vehicles, and four are about 20 years’ old.” 

As for dog handlers, he said they need more officers if they want to expand the unit. 

“In order to cater to the northern unit, there needs to be a whole new department created of handlers and trainers and who will lead the team. 

“We can’t split the team here to go there. Maybe some of our senior handlers here can go there to train the staff.” – January 21, 2023.