Tracker dogs Denti, Frankie off to join Turkey quake rescue

The dogs and their handlers, who were part of the Batang Kali landslide rescue, are in a second Malaysian contingent sent to help efforts in Turkey.

FMT Reporters -

Denti and Frankie, tracker dogs with the Fire and Rescue Department, are to join the rescue efforts in Turkey, where more than 11,200 have died in an earthquake.

SEPANG: Tracker dogs Denti and Frankie have been included in Malaysia’s team helping search and rescue efforts in southern Turkey, where more than 11,200 have been killed in a devastating earthquake.

The dogs have been trained to find victims, alive or deceased, said the chief commander of the fire and rescue services team, Ismail Abd Ghani, according to Bernama.

The Malaysian team comprises 20 members from the Special Malaysia Disaster Assistance and Rescue Team, 30 from the Fire and Rescue Department, and 30 members of the Civil Defence.

The dogs and their handlers, firemen Tony Anak Albert Mani and Y Thibagaran, left for Turkey last night with the Malaysian contingent.

Ismail said Denti and Frankie were involved in the rescue operations at the landslide tragedy at Father’s Organic Farm campsite in Batang Kali in December.

Cabinet minister Armizan Mohd Ali, who was at the airport to see off the team, said the dogs were included in the mission to ensure the Malaysian rescue team could carry out operations more effectively.

Malaysia’s first rescue team of 70 Smart personnel has arrived in Gaziantep. Armizan said the team faces several formidable obstacles, namely the extreme weather, logistics and transport coordination as well as geopolitical security factors.

“Nevertheless, the spirit of all the members involved remains high,” he said.