Fire dog reporting for duty in Biloxi

The Biloxi Fire Department has added a new spotted member to its staff.

Say hello to the newest addition to the Biloxi Fire Department, Jack. Jack is a one-year-old Dalmatian. He started at the fire station less than a week ago. Fire Chief Joe Boney said, “We were contacted a few weeks back from a lady who was interested in placing Jack in a good home and she saw that we were opening a new fire station and she thought about the fire department.”

Jack will serve an important role at the station. He will be a public relations dog. He will make appearances around the city including at schools. “A lot of children love firemen and love firefighters but they see us in this gear and it scares them. So Jack will be a big part of that, to show children when a fireman is in his gear to run to the firemen and Jack will be learning some of that as well, in fact we were training him yesterday on some of that.”

Just like any new hire, Jack still has a lot of learning to do, but Chief Boney tells News 25 he hopes to have Jack ‘graduate’ and get his own badge with the current recruit class of firefighters. “In a few weeks when we feel Jack has met all of the requirements that we want him to meet, he will be issued a badge just like every other firefighter in the fire department. We have a recruit class going on and were hoping that his graduation will coincide with theirs, so he will be able to earn his badge just like other firefighters.”

Besides his regular duties, Jack will be able to provide firefighters with emotional support and a way to destress at the station. “Unfortunately, Jack can’t be all of the stations, but here at Central and the other stations when he goes out to them. He will just be a companion, just somebody there, just a dog that is there for the guys, just for their friendship.”

If you would like to meet Jack or have him make an appearance at an event, you can call the Biloxi Fire Department.