Otter helps Florida deputies on search-and-rescue missions by finding missing people underwater
When it comes to missing people, K-9 units have usually led the way in taking investigators to the water's edge. And when the search in the water gets too difficult, one Florida sheriff's office is enlisting the help of one furry officer.
Meet "Splash," the search and rescue otter, who has been helping first responders across Florida.
Splash, like other otters, has the unique ability to smell underwater by "shooting" air bubbles that trap scents, allowing him to find things such as human remains, CBS News' affiliate in West Palm Beach WPEC reported. Law enforcement across the state took part in training with Splash on Thursday.
Michael Hadsell, the founder of Peace River Search and Rescue, explained his decision to train Splash to WPEC, saying that he was "trying to solve a problem."
"The problem is that we miss more recoveries than we get working on low-visibility diving and forensic diving," he said. "And so, I'm trying to put the odds in our favor so we get more recoveries. And, that's what the otter's for."
According to WPEC, Splash is possibly the only known cadaver otter in the world. Hadsell told WPEC that Splash has participated in over 20 missions so far, finding four bodies in that time. Martin County Sheriff John Budensiek spoke on the impact Splash has had on his deputies.
"We see a lot of innovative things with technology, AI, but we're going back to the basics of using an animal to do what they do best, and that's to go in their own environment and detect things that don't belong there," he told WPEC.
Budensiek said Martin County responds to about one to two people each year who go missing in the water, with many of those cases going unsolved.
Hadsell told WPEC that the demand for Splash's assistance is so high that he plans on training another cadaver otter next year.
"I could probably stay out 52 weeks out of the year and just keep working," he said. "So, we're going to need another otter to help with the call volume."
Splash isn't just Florida-famous — he's also gaining fans around the world, as people as far as Ukraine have come to meet the four-legged search and rescue officer, Hadsell told WPEC.