Frida, one of three Marine dogs specially trained to search for people trapped inside collapsed buildings, wears her protective gear during a press event in Mexico City, Thursday, Sept. 28, 2017. Actor Chris Evans, of Captain America fame, retweeted a video of Frida at work, adding 鈥淲hat did we do to deserve dogs?鈥� (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
MEXICO CITY鈥擡ven without rescuing anyone from the rubble after Mexico鈥檚 big earthquake, a photogenic yellow Labrador retriever named Frida has gained an international social media following.
At least 344 people died in the Sept. 19 earthquake, including 205 in Mexico City. For days, rescuers who tunneled into huge mounds of debris and selfless volunteers who threw themselves into work around the city were lauded for their efforts. But no individual captured the hearts of Mexicans and those watching the efforts from afar like Frida.
Clad in goggles and neoprene booties, Frida with nose to the ground and clambering over crumbled buildings became a symbol of hope.
鈥淚n social terms, this dog functioned like a transitional object because maybe she didn鈥檛 help us in anything real or concrete鈥攎eaning she didn鈥檛 rescue anyone 鈥� but she let us feel like there was hope and that there were things that could help us,鈥� said Fatima Laborda, a psychoanalyst and director of Casa Grana, a psychological assistance and research organization.
Laborda said Thursday that in traumatic situations, whether war or natural disaster, people tend to seek refuge in something real or symbolic as they try to regain confidence and a feeling of safety. A rescuer literally removing rocks to free you is one way to feel helped, but someone can also 鈥渇eel supported by merely seeing people in the street, because that way I feel the solidarity of everyone else and that is symbolic and also can give me psychological relief.鈥�
The Sept. 19 earthquake that shook Mexico City and nearby states was not even Frida鈥檚 first in September. She was dispatched to Juchitan, a town in Oaxaca state that sustained much damage in the magnitude 8.1 quake that struck southern Mexico on Sept. 7.
READ: Mexico tallying the economic cost of big earthquake
Over the course of a six-year career, Frida鈥�8 years old, 65 pounds and trending internet topic鈥攈as found 41 bodies and 12 people alive. She has worked quake disasters abroad as well, including in 2010 in Haiti and 2016 in Ecuador.
But she didn鈥檛 reach celebrity status until Mexico鈥檚 most recent disaster when the Mexican navy鈥擣rida鈥檚 employer鈥攔eleased a video of her at work on its Twitter account.
Frida鈥檚 star rose just as another symbol of hope dissipated. For two days eyes were glued to search efforts at a collapsed school where including 19 children and seven adults died. Word spread that a girl named Frida Sofia was trapped in the rubble. But ultimately, the navy announced that she had never existed.
That left Frida the rescue dog.
Actor Chris Evans, of 鈥淐aptain America鈥� fame, retweeted a video of Frida at work, adding: 鈥淲hat did we do to deserve dogs?鈥�
Groups of women who knit offered designs inspired by Frida on Facebook, with the earnings going to earthquake relief efforts.
No one resists Frida鈥檚 charms, including her two handlers. One of them, Emmanuel Hernandez, a marine corporal, said Frida was identified early on for having qualities of a good search dog: docility, a good instinct for hunting and strong sense of smell.
Hernandez tamped down rumors that Frida鈥檚 retirement might come soon. She remains capable and ready to work, he said.
In the future, she could transition into more of a mentoring role rather than search leader, he added. Two young Belgian malinois worked with her in Juchitan.
Whenever her retirement does come, she will be put up for adoption to navy personnel.
鈥淚f someone asks me if I would want to take Frida, I would say yes,鈥� Hernandez said. 鈥淏ut we will have Frida for a long time yet.鈥� /jpv