Riley County is saying goodbye to its long serving emergency management director and fire chief this month.
Pat Collins has been working for Riley County since 1977, one of the longest serving county employees. He started off working in the public works department. He was then named emergency management director in 1991, and fire chief for the District 1 Fire Department in 1995.
“When I first started, they had 16 stations out there and were old block buildings. We used old forestry equipment that had been given to us. We also had over 400 people on a list, but there were people on the list who had since died,” says Collins.
Since then, many changes were made including training requirements. Collins says their goal back then was to change their class rating to allow insurance rates for residents to be lowered.
Collins also had his fair share of big blazes to fight, one of which happened the same year he took over as emergency management director. That fire started on the interstate and crossed Highway 77. They had 30-40 trucks working on that fire.
Collins has also seen his fair share of fatality fires over the years, whether it was firefighters or victims. A few years ago, Collins responded to a fire in Ogden that will stay in his memory.
“Those are the ones that stick with you over the years. There were three people who were actually my friends that died in that fire,” says Collins.
Collins says he tells his people in situations like this that they are there doing the best they can with what they are given.
One of the biggest events to happen during Collins’ tenure as an emergency management director was the ’93 Flood. Collins says the communication with the Army Corps of Engineers was nothing like compared to today.
“We had to deal with the people in Kansas City and they only gave us so much information. The day they opened the outlet, they told us they weren’t going to do it,” says Collins.
Collins says they had already evacuated that area, but the experience was nerving getting that kind of information in short notice. Information sharing today is easier with the ability to have constant contact with the Army Corp of Engineers, such with the flooding at Tuttle Creek last year.
“Back in’93, we started working out of the coal chute over at the old jail. Last year, the fire department asked us to move up there. Having that kind of cooperation and collaboration was what has made my job so easy over the years,” says Collins.
Collins’ last day with the county was earlier this week. Russell Stukey officially took over the position after Riley County commission approval on Monday. A replacement for the fire chief has not yet been announced. However, the commission approved the hiring of Michael Regal as fire chief during their meeting Monday.
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