In the line of duty: Community mourns loss of Missouri fire captain
WARRENSBURG, Mo. (KCTV) - A tight-knit community is left mourning after the tragic loss of a fire captain over the weekend.
Johnson County Missouri Fire Protection District (JCFPD) Captain Vernon Collett collapsed while on the scene of a half-acre grass fire Saturday afternoon in Warrensburg.
Warrensburg is about 60 miles east of Kansas City.
Officials shared Monday that the fire was a planned burn set by a resident, which lost control due to high winds.
According to the Fire Chief, this is the first line of duty death in the department’s history established in 1979. The loss shakes their to their core.
WHO WAS CAPTAIN VERNON COLLETT?
60-year-old Captain Collet ed the department back in 1995 and worked at Station 6 in Valley City, which is about 15 miles northeast of Warrensburg.
He was promoted to lieutenant in 1997 and became captain in 2011.
When he wasn’t fighting fires, he was at his full-time job at the Johnson County Road and Bridge Department.
He was a lifelong Johnson County resident and is survived by his father and two nephews.
HOW OTHERS WILL HIM
Those who knew Captain Collett described him as a fun-loving person, who loved to tell stories and said this loss is heartbreaking.
“Vernon was a character... He was a storyteller, very intelligent,” said Dee Bennett, Assistant Fire Chief.
Bennett was close with Collett before he ed the Johnson County Fire Protection Department in 1995.
He said they were not only colleagues, but good friends for nearly 33 years.
“He had more common sense than most people. He could solve a problem, make it look so easy when people just scratched their head at what the issue was, “said Bennett, “whether it was a big issue or a small issue he could figure it out in his own way.”
He was described as a dedicated leader, a mentor and a guy who put others first.
“He really cared about the people under him, at the station, he came back to the recruit training for the new people just so they can be with him, so they can count on him and get to know him and spend time with him,” explained Bennett.
While Bennett tries to cope with this loss, he had one more thing to say to his friend, Captain Collett.
“Thanks for all you’ve done; I’m going to miss you.”
TIMELINE OF EVENTS LEADING UP TO COLLETT’S ING
At a press conference on Monday, the Department gave a timeline of what happened on the day that Collett ed.
- Around 1:45 p.m. JCFPD was dispatched on a fast-moving half-acre field fire on 610 NE MM Highway.
- At 1:57 p.m., Collett was in the area and went to the scene, shortly after at 2 p.m., the Brush Unit arrived, and discovered Collett.
- At 2:09 p.m., R was initiated and at 2:18 p.m., EMS crews arrived and continued to perform life-saving measures.
- EMS was not successful and at 3:03 p.m. Collett was pronounced dead.
The official cause of his death is still under investigation.
FUNERAL ARRANGEMENTS TO PAY RESPECTS
A spokesperson with the JCFPD said Funeral arrangements have been made for those who wanted to pay their respects.
A service will be taking place on Friday, March 14. A Fire service escort will begin at 9 a.m. from Sweeney-Phillips & Holden Funeral Home in Warrensburg.
The procession will exit the funeral home onto N. Maguire Street and travel north through Warrensburg. As the escort proceeds, it will beneath a large American flag displayed over N. Maguire Street and E. Cooper Boulevard, ed by ladder trucks from the Warrensburg Fire Department and Clinton Fire Department.
Continuing north on Missouri 13 Highway, the escort will turn east onto Missouri Route E, ing Johnson County Fire Protection District Station 6, where Captain Collett served. The procession will then arrive at Heartland Church in Knob Noster.
Visitation will begin at 10 a.m. at the Heartland Church, 777 NE 23 Highway, Knob Noster, Mo. The funeral will begin at 11 a.m.
Captain Collett will receive full fire service honors during the funeral service at Heartland Church.
A Graveside will follow the funeral but will be closed to family, friends and of JCFPD.
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