Rip was found as a stray following a heavy bombing raid of
Poplar, London in 1940 by
Air Raid Warden Mr E. King.
[1] He was thrown scraps by Mr King, who expected the dog to leave, but the two struck up a friendship.
[2] Mr King worked at post B132 in
Poplar, London where Rip was adopted as mascot of the Southill Street Air Raid Patrol.
[3] He began acting as an unofficial rescue dog, being used to sniff out casualties trapped beneath buildings,
[1] and became the service's first search and rescue dog.
[2]
Rip was not trained for search and rescue work, but took to it instinctively.
[4] In twelve months between 1940 and 1941, he found over a hundred victims of the air raids in London.
[2] His success has been held partially responsible for prompting the authorities to train search and rescue dogs towards the end of
World War II.
[5]
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How welcome to the victims must have been the first sounds of those scrabbling paws, shrill terrier yaps, and the first sight of the grinning Tommy Brock face with its merry friendly eyes. |
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