Antwerp police train with patrol dogs on the water: “Investigating how teams can strengthen each other” (Antwerp)

Antwerp –

Can the Antwerp police use dogs for interventions in the city port in the near future? The police looked for an answer to that question on Monday at the Eilandje. “This collaboration has a lot of potential,” the police say.

An armed man with a knife causes a commotion on the pontoon at the Kattendijdok, a popular hotspot on the Eilandje in Antwerp during the summer months. At least that was the scenario of the exercise that the Antwerp police had set up on Monday. That location was not chosen by chance: the pontoon is quickest to reach by water.

Enter the Argus 22, the boat that the police employed two years ago for safety along and on the water in the city harbour. Patrol dog Viktor was also on board especially for the exercise. With a quick jump he lands on the pontoon, within a few seconds Viktor had neutralized the armed man.

“This morning we mainly worked on habituation,” explains Inspector Glenn Lauwers of the dog team. “The dogs were able to get acquainted with the water, the wind and the environment on the boat, and these experiences could be linked to an exercise in the afternoon. It went smoothly, partly because our dogs have already undergone extensive training.”

In addition to the police dog handlers, members of the Eilandje neighborhood team, which includes the city port, also watched with an approving eye. “The Argus 22 has already been used at events over the past two years, but also, for example, to resolve nuisance files,” adds Commissioner Dennis Cuyvers of the West region.

“With this exercise we wanted to see to what extent the different specializations within the police force can work together and strengthen each other. Today we definitely saw that this collaboration has a lot of potential.”