Accident or criminal act? As the fires multiplied in France In recent weeks, investigators have been able to rely on a surprising ally to trace the origins of the flames: GoliathA Malinois specialized in the research of arson accelerator products (RPAIC).
Exceptional flair
The latest investigation of Goliath led him to Saint-Hilaire-les-Places in Haute-Vienne (87), a week after the fire which ravaged 25 hectares of forest. Thanks to his exceptional sense of smell, this athletic pooch is able to quickly navigate a burned area and spot tiny traces of hydrocarbons among the ashes, branches and debris.
Goliath is part of a very restricted circle of gendarmerie dogs trained to detect fire accelerators, substances sometimes used to deliberately cause a fire to start. In Francethere are only ten of them who have this specialization.
If Goliath is capable of such a feat, it is thanks to rigorous training which taught him to detect very specific odors, but also thanks to the relationship of trust that he has built with his handler, Laurent Brault.
On the ground, he simply guides him with a few gestures or a look. “ We know each other well. We have been working regularly for 3 years. You just have to make gestures, or look at each other, we understand each other », explained the gendarme to France 3 Aquitaine.
A valuable ally in determining the origin of fires
At a fire scene, Goliath does not replace investigators, but it complements their work by helping them better understand how the fire started. As the chief adjutant points out Frédéric Pauliat : “ There is more than just man or technology in an investigation. Our 4-legged friends bring us a lot in this area “.
© Margaux Blanloeil / France 3
Investigators begin by analyzing the terrain and demarcating a search area using maps and photographs. “ The dog finalizes the work of the investigators », summarizes the adjutant Laurent Brault. Once the clue has been spotted by Goliathsamples are taken and sent to the laboratory for study.
This collaboration has become particularly important as fires multiply. Drought, weakened vegetation and very dry soils complicate field research. HAS Saint-Hilaire-les-Places as elsewhere, the objective remains the same: to quickly determine whether a fire is of accidental or criminal origin.
© Margaux Blanloeil / France 3
Once again, the flair of Goliath could prove decisive: the clues noted thanks to his intervention will now be analyzed in order to clarify the circumstances of the start of the fire.