In Arnold, Missouri, a tragic incident occurred when a police dog named Vader passed away due to a malfunction in the patrol vehicle’s air conditioner. The 4-year-old K-9 for the Arnold Police Department in suburban St. Louis lost his life on a day with temperatures soaring into the 90s and high humidity.
According to a Facebook post from the Arnold police, Vader was left in the vehicle with the air conditioning running while his handler attended to other responsibilities, a common practice when the K-9 partner is not actively involved in police duties. However, upon the officer’s return, it was discovered that the air conditioning system had failed. Vader was promptly taken to a veterinarian clinic, where he initially showed signs of improvement but sadly later succumbed to the heat.
Police mentioned that the department’s police dog vehicles are equipped with a system that alerts the handler via phone, turns on a cooling fan, and can even lower the windows if the temperature inside the vehicle reaches a certain point. Unfortunately, in this instance, the heat alarm system did not activate as expected.
This devastating incident involving Vader is the second hot-car fatality of a Missouri police dog this year. Earlier in June, another police dog named Horus passed away in a similar hot car incident in Savannah, Missouri.
