Yalinie Mathan
Lexi, a Sabah rescue dog with the state Fire and Rescue Department, has died at the age of 10. She had just completed her final mission, the successful search for a missing 67-year-old man in Menggatal, near Kota Kinabalu. The Labrador Retriever was one of the unit’s earliest search dogs, The Star reported on 9 November. The Sabah rescue dog worked in forests like those in our story on tiger footprints in Gerik.
The man had been reported missing on 4 November. Lexi’s last search ended on 6 November. Searches in forest terrain are hard, and tracker dogs like her are trained for them. Moreover, a missing person in the jungle can be hard to reach on foot.
Overall, here is what happened on her last mission, who she was and what is still unknown.
Her last mission
The search lasted two days. The Star says Lexi and Scott, another unit dog, were trained for forest and jungle rescue. The elderly man was located in Menggatal, and the report gives no further detail on the terrain.
After the search, Lexi was taken back to the station. Staff bathed and fed her. Moreover, she showed no signs of distress, illness or any change in behaviour.
Later, personnel found her lifeless in her kennel during their rounds. She did not respond to her name. As a result, staff tried to resuscitate her, but without success.
The cause of death had not been announced when the report was published. However, the report says she was buried on 7 November after a post-mortem. Therefore, the final result may follow.
Who Lexi was
Lexi was born on 21 April 2016 in the United Kingdom. She was brought to Sabah in 2018. She arrived as part of the department’s earliest batch of search and rescue dogs.
Five other dogs came in the same batch, which made six in all. They were Scott, Pepper, Bill, Peter and Fleur. Meanwhile, the report does not say how many of them are still working.
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K9 unit division chief Calvin Joe Jeafery said Lexi was among the friendliest dogs in the unit. He added that she loved playing with balls. In addition, her last handler was Fireman Arthur Anderson Walter.
The report gives no count of her operations. Likewise, it names no awards. By our count, she served about eight years in Sabah, since she arrived in 2018.
What the unit said
The department paid tribute on its Facebook page. It thanked Lexi for her service and for being part of the Sabah Fire Department family. Furthermore, it said she would be missed.
However, the report gives no detail on how Lexi tracked the man. It also does not say how long the second day of searching lasted or how far the team walked.
The report does not say in what condition the man was found. It gives no details about his family. Therefore, we have not added any.
In short, the Sabah rescue dog died after her final mission, which found a missing 67-year-old man in Menggatal. Watch for the department’s word on the cause of death.
Amirull Salihing
CJMY
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