UPDATE: As of today, Edinburgh Police Chief Doyne Little says the community has donated $27,000 toward the police department’s first K9 unit since the 1980s. He’s also working with a group that plans to donate first aid kits and narcan kits for the dog.

On Monday, the Edinburgh Town Council voted to create an official fund for the future K9 program.

Chief Little expects the council to approve purchase of the new dog in their next meeting on July 11.

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EDINBURGH, Ind. — Increased drug activity is hitting small towns and making it hard for small police departments to keep up. That’s why the town of Edinburgh is making moves to add a new K-9 unit to its police department.

Recently, Edinburgh PD has been seizing a collection of drugs, gun, and other illegal items. “Most of it’s large amounts, but you have a lot of fentanyl,” said Chief Doyne Little with the Edinburgh Police Department. “So our concern is, only three granules is enough to kill a person.”

Chief Doyne Little says many drug busts begin with a traffic stop, during which, drug-sniffing K9s can detect narcotics. However, Edinburgh Police doesn’t have those K9s and has had to rely on surrounding agencies.

This is the reason why Chief Doyne Little and the Edinburgh Town Council are working to secure funding for their own K-9 unit. Getting drugs off of the street is often a race against time.

Major Chris Lane with the Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Department says small agencies without their own K9s are at a big disadvantage in the war on drugs. “I would say that our K9s, every shift they work, they’re probably being utilized in some sort of way,” said Major Lane.

The cost of starting a new K-9 unit could be around $20,000. Chief Little is already in talks with several businesses and private citizens about possible donations. He hopes to have the new unit up and running within the next four months.

Anyone who wants to donate to the new K-9 unit is asked to call Chief Little at 812-526-3500 or email dlittle@edinburgh.in.us.