Blind Paralympian teams up with scent-trailing dog to find missing people
SAANICH, B.C. — Long before Jessica Tuomela partnered with her dog on a life-saving mission, she was a kid who couldn’t be contained.
“I always wanted to challenge myself,” Jessica says. “And see how far I could push things.”
Although she couldn’t see — after being blinded by retina cancer when she was three — Jessica fearlessly pushed herself to accomplish all the things others said she couldn’t.
“I would get really good at achieving something,” Jessica laughs. “And then be like, ‘Cool! What’s next?!’”
But then Jessica turned 16 and realized there was a milestone she’d never reach.
“I was watching all my friends get their licenses, driving around with the windows open and the radio playing,” Jessica says. “It was really, really hard.”
It was an emotional blow that Jessica learned to overcome by making a positive choice.
“Find something that’s better,” Jessica advises, before laughing. “I got a guide dog!”
At the same time, Jessica was training to be the best swimmer she could. She competed in three Paralympic Games — and won silver — before choosing to up the ante and become a triathlete.
“Why do one sport when you can do three?” Jessica asks with a laugh.
Jessica had to not just learn to run for the first time, but do it in tandem with a sighted partner giving directions, before mastering how to cycle in tandem, too.
“Riding around the corner at 70 km/h feels so good!” Jessica smiles.
But then her second Paralympics as a triathlete was postponed by the pandemic, and Jessica started searching for a new challenge.
“I discovered discriminate scent trailing,” Jessica says. “And I was like, ‘Whoo!’”
So Jessica contacted the US-based ‘Scent Evidence K9’ and was teamed up with Lucy, a dog trained to search for missing people, before launching her own rescue company ‘True North K9’.
“It gets me to work with a dog, which I absolutely love. It also helps me help other people, which is another passion of mine,” Jessica says. “Why wouldn’t I do that?”
The dynamic duo’s skills were put to the test a few weeks ago, after an 89-year-old with dementia went missing. Jessica and Lucy searched for three kilometres before Lucy stopped on the other side of a forest and launched herself into a lake.
“I felt my heart just sank. Is this going to be a recovery?” Jessica recalls thinking. “We got into the water and then someone starts very happily talking to Lucy. Turns out it’s the right person.”
Jessica says the feeling of returning a person home safely has no comparison, not even winning on the world stage.
“Find what fuels you,” Jessica says. “And do it for the right reasons.”
And whether she’s inspiring athletes to overcome adversity, or offering the skills to find missing people, Jessica says the right reason for her is helping others.
“Leaving this world a better place is really important to me.” Jessica smiles.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Two killed after collision with truck on Hwy. 417 near Limoges, Ont.
Ontario Provincial Police say two people were killed after a car and a transport truck collided in the westbound lanes of Highway 417 near Limoges, Ont. on Tuesday afternoon.
Houston braces for flooding to worsen in wake of storms
High waters flooded neighborhoods around Houston on Saturday following heavy rains that have already resulted in crews rescuing hundreds of people from homes, rooftops and roads engulfed in murky water.
Canadian doctor concerned new weight-loss drug Wegovy may be used inappropriately
As Wegovy becomes available to Canadians starting Monday, a medical expert is cautioning patients wanting to use the drug to lose weight that no medication is a ''magic bullet,' and the new medication is meant particularly for people who meet certain criteria related to obesity and weight.
Police officer hit by driver of fleeing vehicle in Toronto
York Regional Police say they are continuing to search for a suspect in an auto theft investigation who was captured on video running over a police officer in Toronto last month.
‘We made them safer and more fun’: Here’s what’s new about e-scooters
Electric scooters (e-scooters) have been gaining popularity in the capital and this season comes with some changes and updates.
A Chinese driver is praised for helping reduce casualties in a highway collapse that killed 48
A Chinese truck driver was praised in local media Saturday for parking his vehicle across a highway and preventing more cars from tumbling down a slope after a section of the road in the country's mountainous south collapsed and killed at least 48 people.
Grandparents killed in wrong-way crash on Hwy. 401 identified
A 60-year-old man and a 55-year-old woman killed in a wrong-way crash on Highway 401 earlier this week have been identified by the Consulate General of India in Toronto.
Canadian Auger-Aliassime reaches first Masters final in Madrid with another walkover
Montreal's Felix Auger-Aliassime has advanced to his first ATP Masters final, and he hasn't had to play all that much tennis to do it.
Quebec man who threatened Trudeau, Legault online sentenced to 20 months in jail
A Quebec man who pleaded guilty to threatening Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Premier François Legault has been sentenced to 20 months in jail.