July 18, 2011 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (SH2011-55) FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION R. Steve Huffman Public Information Officer (251) 208-2857/Fax: (251) 208-2861 E-Mail: huffman@cityofmobile.org CANINES AND HANDLERS WANTED FOR SEARCH AND RESCUE WORK Alabama Task Force One’s (ALTF-1) Urban, Search and Rescue Team are looking for potential volunteers with canines that may be interested in training for search and rescue work. The team will host a meeting on Wednesday, July 27 beginning at 6 p.m. at the Mobile Fire-Rescue Department’s training academy located at 860 Owens Street across from the City’s Animal Shelter. The meeting will be for humans only, no canines please. Potential canines should not be older than 4 years old. The Handler needs to be in good health and able to work in extreme conditions for up to two weeks at a time. To find out more about FEMA’s Search and Rescue Dog program go to www.disasterdog.org. When a disaster event warrants national Urban Search and Rescue (US&R) support, FEMA will deploy task forces. The role of these task forces is to support state and local emergency responders' efforts to locate victims and manage recovery operations. Canine search teams play a critical role during structural collapse incidents. The canines help search teams to locate victims, using their incredible sense of smell to detect live human scent, even from a victim buried deep in the rubble. Canine search teams have been used during the aftermath of hurricanes along the Gulf Coast, the Tornadoes that struck North Alabama and Missouri, earthquakes and the terrorist attacks on September 11th. ###