The Hawai‘i Fire Department announced the passing of retired Arson K9 Ka’imi. Ka’imi passed away on Saturday, December 12, 2020.
Ka’imi was the first certified Arson dog in the State of Hawai‘i. Ka’imi partnered with Fire Investigator Robert Perreira starting in May of 2008. Perreira and Ka’imi team served the county and the state for twelve years working hundreds of fires, conducting numerous public education events, visiting elementary schools and also conducting numerous media interviews.
Chief Perreira and now-retired Fire Chief Darren Rosario and Ka’imi took part in a radio interview with New West Broadcasting’s Sherry Bracken in 2016. Chief Perreira talked about how Ka’imi was trained to track the source of a fire by sniffing out accelerants to deterine if a fire was arson.
Then Fire Chief Darren Rosario, Ka’imi, and Chief Bobby Perreira
At the peak of his career, Ka’imi worked the high profile Marco Polo fire on O’ahu where Perreira said as usual he did an amazing job in helping determine the source and origin point of the fire.
On December 31, 2019, Ka’imi gave up the working dog life and retired to the Perreira home where he enjoyed the remainder of his dog years. Perreira who is currently the Acting Fire Chief said, “Ka’imi will be missed not only by the Perreira family, the fire department, and the many friends he made over the years, but also by the Arson K9 family around the nation.”
The photo attached is of Acting Chief Perreira and Ka’imi at the unveiling of the National Fire Dog Monument in Washington DC taken in 2014.
