Oklahoma City search and rescue K9 teams re-certify, reflect on 30th anniversary of bombing

Teams from six fire departments across Kansas and Oklahoma recertified their search and rescue canines on Saturday. 

Canines are required to undergo recertification every 3 years. 

“The test is set up to where we can have anywhere from 4 to 6 victims total,” said OCFD Battalion Chief Andrew McCann. “And the dog has to find all of those.” 

Teams from Owasso, Moore and Oklahoma City all passed their recertification on Saturday. According to McCann, dogs can search an area in minutes which would require people to search for hours. 

“Once the dog completes the examination today, then they're what we call ‘deployment ready,’” McCann said. “The dog is ready to go out on a deployment, whether that be locally within the metropolitan area, or within the state, or outside the state in whatever type or whatever rescue situation is required.” 

The timing of the testing sends its own message to the department. The department is remembering 30 years since the Oklahoma City bombing. 

“What a lot of people don't realize about April 19th, 1995, is that it is really the birthplace of what we know today as urban search and rescue,” McCann said. “We did have some teams present in the United States, but not the system that we have today. The events of April 19th showed us we needed that system, and so we bolstered and created what we have today.” 

30 years ago, McCann believes there were roughly only 4 certified canine search and rescue teams in the country. 

Today, he believes that number is more than 165 certified teams nationally. 

“Why we have it, and why we've built it the way we built it — it all came from the response that happened here,” he said.