Sirius had a permanent job: sniffing out explosives in the basement of the South Tower of the World Trade Center.
On September 11, 2001, his handler, Officer David Lim, put him in his kennel to go help with the evacuation. He promised he would return. He never got the chance to keep that promise: the tower collapsed with Sirius inside, while Lim escaped via a staircase and became trapped in the rubble next door.
His remains were not found until January 2002, and were removed with full police honors, just like any fallen officer. Months later, in April, more than 100 K-9 dogs and their handlers saw him off at Liberty State Park with bagpipes and a 21-gun salute. Today, a plaque at the 9/11 Museum bears his name, alongside the leash and tag that Lim decided to donate so that no one would forget his four-legged partner.
