“‘Kom, sek,’” says the rescue sapper from the State Emergency Service firmly and loudly. He calls his dog, which helps to de-mine the land in Mykolaiv region, in Norwegian. These dogs were provided by partners from Norway, so they understand basic commands: “sit,” “lie down,” “come,” and “search”— only in Norwegian.

The use of dogs for de-mining began during the war in eastern Ukraine, where they searched for ammunition, grenades, and other explosive devices. Since the full-scale invasion began, search dogs have helped to de-mine areas in Sumy and Kharkiv regions.

Since April, Dmytro’s team has been working in Mykolaiv. You can see how sapper dogs assist the State Emergency Service in de-mining southern Ukraine in the hromadske video.