鈥淔iji,鈥� a 3-year-old German Shepherd Dog perches on the bow of a small aluminum fishing boat. She鈥檚 not taking a leisurely boar ride: she鈥檚 working. Fiji works as a human remains detection dog with her owner and handler Jack Thorpe.
Also known as a cadaver dog, Fiji鈥檚 nose twitches, and her eyes fixate on the debris-strewn lake around her. She鈥檚 sniffing for victims trapped in the floodwater in western North Carolina after Hurricane Helene left a 500-mile path of destruction from Florida to the Southern Appalachians.
Waiting for a Sign
When they鈥檙e on the job, Thorpe sits inches from his dog, observing her for the slightest change in her body language. 鈥淲hen Fiji licks her lips and sits and stares at me without moving, she鈥檚 telling me there鈥檚 a body underwater,鈥� says Thorpe, Nash County Sheriff鈥檚 Office deputy and the Director.
Unlike search and rescue dogs, Fiji鈥檚 job is less hopeful, but serves an extremely important role. 鈥淪he鈥檚 specially trained to pick up the scent of human decomposition in water and on land and isn鈥檛 trained to search for people alive,鈥� Thrope says.
Once she locates a body, Fiji doesn鈥檛 dive into the water to find someone. After she lets her handler know a body is near, first responders retrieve the individual.
Super-Powered Nasal Passages
To do this work, cadaver dogs receive about 1,000 hours of intensive training with chemicals that mimic the scent of decomposing flesh. 鈥淚 began training Fiji for cadaver work when she was 9 months old,鈥� Thorpe says. 鈥淪he was certified through the at 18 months.鈥�
Humans have six million scent receptors in their noses, while dogs have about 200 to 300 million. These canine super noses enable them to detect the scent of human remains lying under nearly 100 feet of water. On land, some dogs can detect a drop of blood or a bone shard and know the difference between a dead animal and a dead person.
鈥淎ir bubbles from the body are the first to emerge from the deceased. Dogs recognize the smell when the air floats to the water鈥檚 surface,鈥� Thorpe says.
鈥淭he scent comes up through gasses to the water鈥檚 surface, but that doesn鈥檛 mean the body is directly under the scent,鈥� explains Cat Warren, author of 鈥淒ogs can start detecting the scent miles down the river because of a current.鈥�
When Fiji searches through rubble on land for victims, she walks back and forth before sitting and staring at Thorpe. 鈥淲e train our dogs to use a passive alert, such as a stare, a sit, or a down,鈥� Thorpe says. 鈥淥n land or where there are buildings, two of our dogs use a bark alert, too, because they can鈥檛 lie down on piles of sharp concrete.鈥�
Reporting for Duty After Helene
Thorpe and Fiji arrived at the Summerfield base of operations in Western North Carolina a day after Hurricane Helene caused historic flooding and damage in Asheville, North Carolina, on September 28.
鈥淚 lived two hours from Asheville and received a callout from to bring Fiji and my three cadaver teams to help find missing people trapped in the floodwater and on land,鈥� says Thorpe. 鈥淲e came right away.鈥�
The teams working on land and water rotated in and out of the area as the search area was so immense and so many people were missing. They soon discovered the reality of working in this unprecedented disaster zone. No access to cell service, power, and running water was the least of their hardships. Floodwaters swept away hundreds of buildings, roads, homes, trees, mud, and vehicles. 鈥淭his environment is very tough on dogs and humans,鈥� Warren says. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e exposed to toxic chemicals, human waste, and debris.鈥�
Along with Fiji, Thorpe鈥檚 three volunteer-trained teams provided additional support. Annissia Justice, Assistant Director of NC Troopers Association, brought 鈥淒ahlia,鈥� a Belgian Malinois, Athena Haus came with her two Belgian Malinois, 鈥淕ypsy鈥� and 鈥淛oey,鈥� and Trish Danula arrived on the scene with 鈥淭uula,鈥� her German Shepherd Dog. 20 additional human remains detection dog teams from the helped with disaster recovery.
Bringing Closure to Families
During training, dogs and handlers are exposed to various challenging environmental conditions to prepare them for natural disasters. And yet, nothing could鈥檝e prepared them for the reality of Hurricane Helene鈥檚 fury. 鈥淵ou can鈥檛 always replicate this situation in training,鈥� Warren says. 鈥淭raining on rubble is one thing, but when they go out after a hurricane and flood, they鈥檙e out there learning as they go along.鈥�
Thorpe has trained dozens of search and rescue and recovery dogs in his career. With 25 years of search and rescue and recovery experience, Thorpe thought he had seen everything. 鈥淚 began training before 9/11, but in all these years, I鈥檝e never seen anything like this, and it felt like a mini war zone,鈥� he says.
Working Through the Devastation
Since much of the flooded areas are only accessible by boat, they slowly surveyed the search area at two to three miles per hour in a systematic cloverleaf formation through the muddy water.
Thorpe鈥檚 dog and handler teams were ready for rest after ten days of performing nearly 80 searches across Asheville, Lake James, Lake Tahoma, the Catawba River in McDowell County, and Madison County. 鈥淭here鈥檚 no doubt that it wears on you, but to bring closure to families is so rewarding,鈥� Thorpe says. 鈥淏est, too, is the bond I have with my dog, and I always want to keep going for those who are lost.鈥�
At home, Fiji enjoys her time off, too. 鈥淪he鈥檚 tired but always ready to go out again when we鈥檙e called,鈥� Thorpe says.