K-9 teams place in simulated manhunt competition

Local K-9 officers shined by placing in the Southeastern State Manhunt Field Trials competition.

Officers from Northwest Florida Reception Center (NWFRC) and Holmes Correctional Institution competed in the simulated manhunt competition hosted by the Escambia County Road Prison at the Blackwater River State Forest.

Teams from Arkansas, Louisiana and Florida competed through the woods on a 1.5-mile day and night track. The Manhunt Trials simulate conditions that K-9 teams experience when finding a lost child or suspect. Competing teams can choose whether they compete in single leash manhunts with one K-9 or multiple leash with more than one K-9. While on the tracks, teams must collect four flags before tagging the person at the end of the track.

The team from NWFRC came out on top in the single leash division with a time of 15.44 minutes. They placed ahead of Liberty Correctional Institution in second place, Apalachee Correctional Institution in third place and Calhoun Correctional Institution in fourth place.

In the multiple leash division, Holmes CI officers placed third with a time of 13.49 minutes. Century Correctional Institution took first place with Jackson Correctional Institution in second.