It’s a harrowing experience for someone to learn that their elderly father has gone missing in the middle of the night. The son of a 70-year-old man knew that this father was used to walking the trails at the Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park, but he became concerned when his father hadn’t seen for over a day and contacted the police. Fortunately, the station had a new dog, a three-year-old Labrador retriever K-9 named Trina, who would be pivotal in finding the man before he lost his life.
70-year-old got lost and fell at Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park
On October 19 at around noon, police from the Puna Patrol division of the Hawai’i Island Police Department received a report that 70-year-old David Arai had gone missing and had not been seen for over a day, according to local outlet KHON2 News.
Arai’s son, Kaohe, said his father, who was visiting from O’ahu, was familiar with the hiking trails at the Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park, a 354,000-acre park that encompasses two active volcanoes. But when David did not return for over 24 hours, Kaohe alerted police. The family believed that he had possibly become confused in the dark and had fallen somewhere in the park, though they are still unsure what happened.
Due to the age of the victim and information the police obtained during the investigation, the man was considered endangered, per the Hawaii Police, triggering a search within the immediate area.
That’s when the police department’s K-9 unit was deployed featuring Trina, a three-year-old Labrador retriever from Sweden, who had been “trained as a live-find human tracking canine.” Officers soon located the man’s rental vehicle at the national park as personnel from the police department and the park, along with assistance from a helicopter from the Hawai’i Fire Department, tried to find David before night fell.
K-9 successfully finds missing man after smelling a pillowcase
Accompanied by her handler Officer Christopher Ross, K-9 Trina was presented a pillowcase with David’s scent and the canine sped off in search of the man.
“The moment she smelled the pillowcase, she just took off down the trail,” Ross told KHON2 News, though he added that it wasn’t easy going through the park. “The conditions were pretty bad going down that trail.”
But it didn’t too long before Trina successfully located the 70-year-old man at around 7:30 p.m.
“And the first thing I noticed, I saw the top of his head,” Ross recalled, “and he was slightly off trail in the bushes, like pretty much laying on his back. We led up to him, just wanted to make sure he was okay, and Trina, when she got next to him, she licked his hand basically to let him know that we found him and that he’s safe.”
Arai was eventually transported to Hilo Medical Center for extreme dehydration and other injuries. The family thanked everyone involved with the rescue since they believe that if he was out any longer in the dark that he might not have made it.
Kaohe says that his father is most grateful for Trina: “He’s extremely thankful to the canine unit, especially the dog that was able to help him. And if she ever retires and is looking for an adoption, he’s open. He said he fell in love with that dog.”
The canine trainer for Trina, Wayne Silva, was amazed at Trina’s ability to track. The Labrador retriever was also responsible for locating a missing teenager in September. “I’ve never seen a dog like this,” he said. “Her nose is just amazing.”
As for Trina’s reward for the man’s rescue, she got extra playtime with her toy, a pup cup, and an extra scoop of kibble.
