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Cook County, Illinois Police K-9 Drago died from complications caused by extreme heat exposure after he was left unattended in his handler’s patrol car.
K-9 Drago is reported to have been left unattended in patrol car while his handler/officer processed an alleged suspect at the Oak Forest Police Department on June 14.
Police and fire department staff tried to revive the K-9 officer when he was discovered inside the vehicle, performing CPR and dousing him with water, but their efforts were not successful and K-9 Drago did not survive.
A now-deleted post to the Oak Forest Police K-9 Memorial Facebook Page said the officer had left the vehicle running with the air conditioner on, but that at some point it stopped working and began blowing hot air instead. In addition to hot air blowing inside the vehicle, outside temperatures reached up to 90-degrees that day.
“Had his agency provided and utilized a backup heat temperature alarm, K-9 Drago would not have succumbed to the heat,” the now-deleted Facebook post read.
“We are heartbroken to lose a canine member of the Forest Preserves of Cook County Police Department,” Cook County Forest Preserves spokeswoman Lambrini Lukidis wrote in a statement on Thursday. “The protection of wildlife and living things are at the core of our mission and we take this loss very seriously.”
The Cook County Forest Preserves is “looking into the circumstances of this incident,” Lukidis added.
K-9 Drago joined the Cook County Forest Preserves Police Department 3 years ago. He was recognized just two months before his death for his part in finding and saving the life of a disoriented dementia patient lost in Tinley Park.
Patricia Richards
Jul 12, 2017 at 5:14 pm
Teach what you preach horrible death
Hotma Satrya Utama
Jul 12, 2017 at 12:24 pm
WOW .. SO STUPID!!! POOR DOG.. HIS PARTNER IS AN IDIOT….RIP DRAGO… WE LOVE YOU DRAGO
tina
Sep 19, 2018 at 5:06 pm
So sad and shocking! I know this is a year later, but I just watched Drago on LivePD Cam. Drago is on it. Earlier I watched a video regarding my own state and their K9 unit. Their cars have a system that if the car turns off the officer gets a notification. Also, how does a car flip from cold air to hot if the car is off and no one is in it?
Carol
Jan 8, 2020 at 3:23 pm
So sad, no excuse for Dragos death. Can you imagine how panicked he must of been? Poor baby.
Hotma Satrya Utama
Jul 12, 2017 at 12:22 pm
WOW .. SO STUPID!!! POOR DOG.. HIS PARTNER IS AN IDIOT….RIP DRAGO… WE LOVE YOU DRAGO
Hotma Satrya Utama
Jul 12, 2017 at 12:21 pm
Clever dog with an idiot partner… so shame
Hotma Satrya Utama
Jul 12, 2017 at 11:59 am
WOW .. SO STUPID!!! POOR DOG.. HIS PARTNER IS AN IDIOT….RIP DRAGO… WE LOVE YOU DRAGO 🙁
Mg
Jul 7, 2017 at 9:06 pm
Try the officer for animal cruelty and endangerment.
After all, if I did that, ofpd would arrest me in a minute.
Nancy
Jul 12, 2017 at 11:48 am
This whole thing is bullshit. The officer neglected the dog and that's the bottom line! Why they're protecting him I have no idea but it is such bull about the heat coming on and the air-conditioner going off. He needs to be fired and prosecuted
Richelle Wilshire
Jul 12, 2017 at 12:47 pm
That's it..!!!!! There should be NO animal left inside or outside a vehicle in cars, trucks or bikes including trailers open or closed. Dogs always have to pay the price of humans, intentional or NOT.
Regina
Jul 4, 2017 at 8:08 pm
Will this officer be charge with involuntary man slaughter of a fellow officer?
Carla Silva
Jul 5, 2017 at 8:13 am
absolutly YES
Liz
Jul 3, 2017 at 11:59 pm
Why couldn't the K-9 officer be out out of the vehicle while a suspect was being processed?
Carol
Jul 3, 2017 at 1:24 am
Son of a b—-
How could this happen? How could the human officer not separate from processing long enough to save his partner. Get him out of car before this horrid thing happened. This has got to stop!!!
Troy Way
Jun 30, 2017 at 3:40 pm
I hope the officer is charged for the death of a fellow officer the same way you, I, any other civilian would be.
John and Chris morrison
Jul 1, 2017 at 2:26 pm
AGREED !
Phoenix
Jul 2, 2017 at 7:08 pm
All you asshole cop haters just need to shut the fuck up. You bastards have no right to disrespect a man who has lost his baby named Drago. The poor officer is already hurting from the lost of his K-9 partner and family member. I feel bad for the officer for losing his big baby. I blame the patrol car for this matter not the officer. You guys have absolutely no right to bash this man. So why don't you all do us a favor and keep your asshole prick comments to your ownsevles. This man doesn't need loser like you making him feel worse
max
Jul 3, 2017 at 12:56 pm
YES of course he's a cop so is immune from laws
christine armstrong
Jul 12, 2017 at 12:01 pm
what a low life piece of shit, I pray he is fired and loses everything, and I hope you hurt real bad for what you have done you fucken monster.
Monica
Jul 12, 2017 at 2:02 pm
This dog was a police officer he served his community his fellow officer let him down and he should be charged the dog should never have been left in the car he needs to take responsibility that dog would've protected him