MASON, Ohio -- There's a new Banshee in Mason, but it's not a ride at King's Island.
Banshee is a police dog who will be the first of his kind for Warren County law enforcement: a bomb-sniffing dog.
The dog got his name because King's Island funded his purchase and training.
Officer Michael Sechrist was training with Banshee for the third day Wednesday, doing some tracking work. Banshee is his first canine. They're in the first of six weeks of official training.
"I've had him for about a month doing some pre-training, just bonding with Banshee," Sechrist said.
The explosives detecting will come later in Banshee's training.
"This day and age … some of those incidents may seem distant, but they're here as well -- lots of bomb threats, lots of bomb scares -- so the opportunity to have a bomb dog here in Warren County is crucial," Sechrist said.
Sgt. Matt Hayes supervises Mason's K-9 Division and started the program more than 10 years ago. He said that Mason has several locations that make having an explosive-detecting dog a good idea.
"I think any large organization or large event can be a target for problems, whether it's King's Island or some of our other large corporations, or even our tennis tournament here in this city," Hayes said.
