A 93-year-old retired mechanic who once owned and operated a Kalihi auto repair shop died in a house fire yesterday morning.

Ronald "Ace" Agena, who was born in Waikane and attended Waipahu High School, was found in the back bedroom of his son's two-story home on Pohaku Street in Kalihi at 9:45 a.m. yesterday.

Agena is survived by two sons, two daughters, eight grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren, his eldest son Stan Agena said.

"It's hard when people die, but when you think about the long life he had, it helps," said Stan Agena, 63.

Ronald Agena's granddaughter and her boyfriend were upstairs when they heard the smoke alarm in Agena's unit go off shortly after 9:20 a.m. yesterday, said Honolulu Fire Department Capt. Terry D. Seelig.

The fire was caused by a space heater in Agena's room that was positioned too close to his bedding, HFD investigators said.

"It's a real tragedy, and we're really sad that there is this loss," Seelig said. "When you use a space heater, you have to watch how close you keep it to combustible materials."

The blaze caused $200,000 worth of damage to the home and contents.

Cristi Franson, 53, who has lived at the corner of Pohaku and Ahiahi streets for more than 30 years, said she could smell smoke in her front yard yesterday but thought nothing of it until she heard sirens.

"I saw it billowing out of his window, and this whole place was smoky," she said, gesturing up and down Pohaku Street.

The granddaughter and her boyfriend rushed to the back unit of the home and found the downstairs portion of the house, where Ronald Agena lived, completely engulfed in flames, Seelig said. About 25 firefighters arrived on scene at 9:23 a.m. and battled the fire for 22 minutes before bringing it under control at 9:45 a.m.

Firefighters searching the rubble found Agena's body in a back bedroom. He was pronounced dead at 10:04 a.m.

"The residents, his granddaughter and her boyfriend, they did everything they could. They tried to get him out," Seelig said. "There was quite a bit of fire when we got there. The smoke and the flames were too much. He was overcome."

Shortly after 11:30 a.m. yesterday, Agena's sons gathered across the street from his home to comfort his granddaughters.

The Hawai'i chapter of the American Red Cross was providing food, shelter and grief counseling to the Agena family. Six people were displaced by yesterday's fire.

Ronald Agena retired 28 years ago and once owned Ace Auto Repair in Kalihi at 'Umi and King streets. He was a self-employed mechanic for more than 30 years and worked alongside his wife, Vivian, who passed away in 1989.

"Ace," as he was known to neighbors and friends, was a celebrated pitcher for a Waipahu town team in the 1930s.

In 1959, Agena attached campaign posters for William F. "Bill" Quinn, Hawai'i's first elected governor, to his Model-T Ford to promote Quinn's candidacy, his son said.

Neighbor Steve Ramos, 39, knew Agena his entire life and remembers how Agena showed him how to tune up a car.

"Ace was one nice guy. When we needed help, we always asked him if we could borrow tools," said Ramos, who saw flames and smoke pouring from Agena's portion of the house yesterday morning. "I used to help him fix his car. He was one nice old Japanese man."

Reach Peter Boylan at pboylan@honoluluadvertiser.com.