As reported in the January 2017 edition of Professional Security, the number of arrests for possession of pyrotechnics at football grounds has shown a large increase over the last five seasons from 32 to 141 in the 2015/16 season, this as a consequence has seen an increase in the use of pyrotechnic detection dogs at football grounds around the country, says NASDU, a sector body representing dog handlers.
It has long been established that a trained detection dog has the capability to detect the presence of a variety of identified target scents such as explosives and drugs and because of the increase in anti-social and dangerous behaviour regarding pyrotechnics at football grounds more dogs are being trained and deployed to detect and indicate when a person or persons are carrying pyrotechnic devices such as flares, rockets and fireworks.
Unfortunately whilst it is accepted that a detection dog can be trained to indicate on given pyrotechnic substances contained in fireworks and many flares, it is now acknowledged that there may be some difficulty in detecting pyrotechnic substances when they are hermetically sealed in protective propulsion canisters/tubes such as certain marine flares.
Advice from the National Association of Security Dog Users (NASDU) is that when end users whether it be the football club direct or a security contractor are considering the deployment of pyrotechnic detection dogs, then the dog should be part of a general physical search strategy supplementing physical search carried out by stewards, rather than being the prime focus of search ie. only searching spectators once a dog has indicated.
NASDU offers a suite of detection dog handler qualifications at level 3 which are endorsed by the awarding organisation HABC who are regulated by Ofqual and acknowledged by the SIA. A handler achieving this qualification and in particular the Pyrotechnic Detection Dog pathway would also be awarded a Team certificate for both them and their dog which has a 12 month expiry and confirms compliance regarding the training recommended in BS 8517 Part 2. It is this qualification and subsequent Team certification that end users whether it is the Football Club direct or through a security provider should be insisting on. It should be noted that all qualifications can be verified by contacting NASDU – www.nasdu.co.uk.
While it is acknowledged that some dogs may be dual trained in both drugs and pyrotechnics it must be remembered that a pyrotechnic detection dog is NOT an Explosive Detection Dog (EDD) and an EDD Dog should never be used for pyrotechnic detection work or indeed any other substance.
Companies and handlers deploying dual discipline dogs ie. pyrotechnic and drugs must ensure that the client is aware of the dog’s capabilities prior to deployment, as a pyrotechnic detection dog also trained for drug detection will inevitably give a large number of false positive indications, as the possession of drugs by supporters is going to be more prevalent within a crowd than those possibly carrying pyrotechnics and as such Search Teams will be committed for greater periods of time and in greater numbers searching a person with drugs for whom the dog has indicated on rather than those carrying pyrotechnics.
For details on NASDU and the work it does on behalf of the private security dog sector in the UK, visit www.nasdu.co.uk or contact them via email [email protected] or telephone 01483 224320.
Picture by Mark Rowe; outside Wembley Stadium.
