Hawai‘i Island Police K9 Trina Locates Endangered Missing Elderly Man in Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park

Hawai‘i Island police successfully located a 70-year-old endangered missing O‘ahu man within Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park on Monday evening, Oct. 19, 2026, with the assistance of the department’s scent-discriminating canine, Trina.

At 12:16 p.m., Puna patrol officers received a report of a missing man who was last known to be in the Volcano area and had not been seen for more than 24 hours. Based on his age and information obtained during the investigation, the man was considered endangered, prompting a search of the surrounding area.

During the investigation, officers located the man’s unoccupied rental vehicle within Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park. Hawai‘i Police Department and National Park personnel conducted extensive search efforts, with aerial assistance provided by a Hawai‘i Fire Department helicopter.

K9 Trina, accompanied by her handler Officer Christopher Ross, of the Area II Juvenile Aid Section, responded to the area and joined in the search.

At 7:30 p.m., K9 Trina successfully located the missing man on a trail, approximately two miles from where his rental vehicle had been located. The man was safely carried back to the trailhead and was subsequently transported to Hilo Benioff Medical Center for medical treatment due to dehydration and exposure.

Trina, a three-year-old Labrador Retriever from Sweden, is trained as a live-find human tracking canine. She is tasked with assisting in searches for missing children and endangered adults throughout Hawai‘i Island. This is the second time in two months that K9 Trina has located a missing person. She was responsible for locating an endangered teenager last month in Waikoloa: https://www.hawaiipolice.gov/k9-trina-locates-endangered-juvenile-in-waikoloa/