Luzerne County Sheriff’s Department adding Labrador Retriever trained to detect explosives

A Labrador Retriever trained to detect explosives is scheduled to start work with the Luzerne County Sheriff’s Department May 12, said county Sheriff Brian Szumski.

Named Hylee (pronounced I-lee), the K-9 turned one on Thursday and will be handled by Sheriff Corporal Michael Flynn.

Interest in acquiring Hylee was prompted by bomb and explosive-related threats in the area in recent years, Szumski said.

“There are not a lot of explosive detection dogs in our area, so we saw there was a need to have one,” he said.

Other entities also have recommended the K-9, he said, citing the Department of Homeland Security and the Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts.

With court and government structures, county government would be a likely target for terrorist acts involving explosives, he said.

“Because of that, we wanted to have our own K-9 on site and ready to go at a moment’s notice,” Szumski said.

On the last election day, Nov. 5, the county sheriff’s department brought in a bomb detection dog from Lackawanna County due to a bomb threat that turned out to be unfounded.

County election workers and officials had to leave the mail ballot processing room on the third floor of the county’s Penn Place Building in downtown Wilkes-Barre for more than an hour election night due to the bomb threat against multiple counties.

After extensive research, Szumski’s department chose to acquire the dog from the Penn Vet Working Dog Center, which is affiliated with the University of Pennsylvania. Penn Vet was highly recommended and has provided K-9s and related training to multiple law enforcement agencies in the region, Szumski said.

The county consciously selected a Labrador Retriever because that breed has a friendly reputation, and Hylee will be making public appearances, the sheriff said.

“We want to utilize the dog in community engagement, so that way people won’t be afraid to talk to the handler about the dog,” he said.

The county paid approximately $4,000 for Hylee and an accompanying 10-week training program required for Flynn to work with the dog and jointly develop their skills in explosive detection, he said. Hylee will complete her training at Penn Vet on May 9.

To reduce the financial burden and involve the community, Szumski’s department worked with the Luzerne Foundation to create a fund that will accept donations to help the county cover ongoing K-9 expenses. A link to the fund can be found at https://luzfdn.fcsuite.com/erp/donate/create/fund?funit_id=6874.

The donated funds will be used exclusively for K-9 expenses, such as veterinary care, food, grooming supplies, medical kits and other essential care, specialized equipment, a K-9 vehicle and maintenance and ongoing training, the site says.

A fundraiser for K-9 expenses called “PJs for Paws” also will be held in county school districts on April 25, the sheriff said.

With this fundraiser, students in participating schools will be asked to donate $1 if they want to wear pajamas to school that day.

As a thank you, Hylee will visit all participating schools, as scheduling allows, at the end of this school year or in the 2025-26 school year, he said.

It’s also possible Hylee will be in some schools on duty due to bomb threats, he said.

“We want the community to be involved and know that everything we’re doing is to make the community safer,” he said.

County Manager Romilda Crocamo said the county is thrilled to announce the addition of the “highly skilled, explosive-sniffing” K-9 to enhance safety and security for county staff, residents and property.

”We’re excited to have her join our team. With her keen nose and friendly demeanor, we know she’ll help keep us safe while always being the good girl we love! Here’s to many successful missions and joyful moments ahead!”

Szumski said Hylee was named in honor of a K-9 that was at the Penn Vet Working Dog Center as a control dog for its 9/11 research study.

A message on the center’s site said it is a national research and development center for detection dogs inspired by search and rescue dogs that responded after the 9/11 attacks.