Vehicle add-ons funded mainly by donations raised during effort to purchase Victor
Attala County Deputy Scott Walters and K-9 Victor have a new set of wheels.
As part of its vehicle replacement process, the Attala County Sheriff’s Department replaced the prior K-9 transport vehicle, which had only one canine-specific feature — a canine insert from 2006.
The new 2018 Ford Police Interceptor has been outfitted with key modern K-9 features, mostly funded by monies remaining after the department raised funds to purchase K-9 Victor. The total cost of outfitting the vehicle was about $5,500 according to Walters, with approximately $4,000 of that covered by those earlier donations.
The unit is fitted with a 2/3 canine insert from Southern States Canine, and Walters can pop the door remotely to let Victor out as long as the vehicle is in park or neutral. This is key should Walters be in a situation where he cannot return to the vehicle to let Victor out.
There is also a rescue door system and a cool guard heat alarm system which flashes headlights, blows the horn if the temperature inside the vehicle becomes too high. That system will also roll down the windows and start fans to pull cooler air into the vehicle. It also will alert Walters via pager should he not be in sight of the vehicle when the alarm goes off.
Walters noted that Hinds County lost a dog to heat in a vehicle earlier this year, so the need for such a system was in the forefront of the department’s mind in outfitting the new vehicle.
There is a 1/3 prisoner transport section, walled off from the K-9 area, that gives a prisoner no capacity to exit the vehicle independently.
“I’m grateful to the Board of Supervisors and the Sheriff for putting me in a good vehicle designed for what we do,” said Walters. “It is a wonderful, much-needed and much-appreciated tool to do our job.”
