Op-Ed By: Steve Silverman
Every year, the U.S. Fire Administration gathers and shares information to raise awareness of arson and juvenile fire setting. This year’s National Arson Awareness Week theme is “Accelerant Detection Canines – Sniffing Out Arson”. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), began training Accelerant Detection Canines in 1986. These dogs are trained to detect a variety of ignitable liquids that could be used to start a fire. Handlers attend a five week training course at the ATF canine training center in Front Royal, Virginia. Dogs have an incredible sense of smell. It is said that a dog’s sense of smell is around 100,000 times more acute than a human’s.
Suffolk County currently has two accelerant detection canines in service. Suffolk County Fire Marshal Brett Martinez became the first Accelerant Detection Canine handler in Suffolk County history. He is currently the longest serving ATF certified canine handler for the ATF Accelerant Detection Canine program, first becoming a handler in 1991. As part of the training by the ATF, the canine teams must commit to an agreement in which the ATF can bring them where needed as part of the National Response Team. Fire Marshal Martinez and his canines Ember, Cinder and currently Jul, have worked on various high profile cases and have assisted the ATF with investigations in New York City, Reno, Nevada and Rhode Island. Most recently, Suffolk County Fire Marshal Don Lynch and his canine Tiana were deployed with the ATF to Schenectady, NY, to assist in the investigation of a fire resulting in multiple fatalities.
Accelerant Detection Canines are motivated accelerant detection tools. These dogs transform from a loving pet to an arson detection tool as soon as the handler puts on the food/reward pouch. An K-9 can cover an entire fire scene in about 30 minutes. It can take us humans days to do what the dog does in minutes. The Guide Dog Foundation for the Blind in Smithtown provided the test dog for determination as to the success of the program.
Fire Marshal Brett Martinez also serves as a dedicated volunteer firefighter with the Hauppauge Fire Department since 1983, where he is a former Captain of Engine Company 4 and the Truck Company.