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Dogs and their trainers saved lives during 911, hurricanes, and other disasters
East County News Service
October 13, 2010 (El Cajon)--At yesterday’s City Council meeting, October 12th, Mayor Mark Lewis and the City Council paid posthumous recognition to two canines, both former members of the El Cajon Fire Department’s Search & Rescue canine team, Billy and Icon.
In November of 1998, Billy was paired with then El Cajon Fire Captain, now Fire Chief Mike Scott, an 18-year veteran with the El Cajon Fire Department. Though Scott's work included 10 years with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Urban Search & Rescue Task Force, he had yet to try his hand at being a canine handler. After watching fellow firefighter Steve Swaney work with the County’s first Search & Rescue Canine, “Sherman,” Scott inquired about becoming a handler himself. Scott and Billy spent countless hours training, getting ready for their first Search and Rescue assignment. In June 1999, Scott & Billy responded to a landslide and retaining wall collapse in San Diego.
But the real test of their skills and abilities came when they were dispatched to the scene of the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001. Also notable was their assistance for the Torrey Pines Bluff collapse in December 2004. Scott and Billy served together as a FEMA Certified Canine Disaster Search Team for six years. Even in retirement, Billy’s eyes would still light up at the sight of his training toy! Billy passed away a few months ago on August 16th.
In February of 2008, after months of training, El Cajon Fire Captain Steve Swaney and Icon achieved FEMA Certification to become members of the Canine Search and Rescue Team for San Diego County. In September 2008 they were deployed to Hurricanes Ike and Gustav where they searched abandoned residential and commercial buildings to ensure no survivors were left behind after the devastating storms. But Icon’s came to an end unexpectedly when he passed away suddenly during the night of July 3, 2010.
The veterinarian determined Icon’s death was the result of several cancerous tumors on his lungs and heart. Though Icon never showed any signs of distress and his yearly medical check-ups never revealed any signs of the disease, the stress of the cancer eventually become too much for Icon’s heart to handle. At just five years old, Icon’s life ended too soon, but not before he made his mark on the Urban Search and Rescue program.
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