Purdue Fire Chief the best in state

West Lafayette, Ind. (WLFI) - One-Hundred and forty U.S. College Students have died in fires over the last decade that could have been prevented.  While none of those accidents happened at Purdue, the Fire Chief wants to make sure it never does.  His efforts to keep students safe, and keep firefighters at the top of their game, have earned him one of the highest honors in his field.

Purdue Fire Chief Kevin Ply is modest about his achievements, but a group of his peers is taking notice.  Ply was named Indiana's Fire Chief of the Year.

But he said there's more work to do.  Ply came to the Purdue Fire Department in 1989. Working his way up the ranks, Ply was named Fire Chief  three and a half years ago, and has sparked change ever since.

"We have increased our training hours, and everyone has become a better firefighter because of the amount of training that we do and the amount of effort that we put in here," said Ply.

The department trains every day, often exceeding federal mandates, making trips out of state to hone firefighting skills on planes and at the airport. The Indiana Emergency Response Conference named Ply Indiana's Fire Chief of the year.

"I was shocked. I mean, I had no expectation. I didn't know I was up for any nomination, it was a complete surprise to me."

Fire prevention is one of Ply's biggest missions. When he took over as Chief, he removed the Deputy Chief position, and created a spot for a full time Fire Prevention Specialist, responsible for fire prevention training for students, inspecting dorms, homes in the greek system, and co-ops.

"Twice a year we're doing inspection of every fraternity every sorority. We're working with those groups not only to provide education to them, but also try to assist them with living safe while they are at school."

All high rise buildings and every dorm excepty Meredith Hall, now has a sprinkler system. Even Elliott Hall of Music, built in 1942, now has new smoke detectors, and a fire alarm system.  Ply said a challenge is making students who live in older homes on and off campus, realize the house, is not wired to handle the kind of drain on power, that students use.

"Back in the 1970's the average student that was going off to school, brought with them four electrical appliances. In 2009 studies show that the average student, when they moved into campus housing, had 17 electrical items."

Ply said fighting fires and leading the Purdue department is something that is in his blood. He said keeping students safe and making firefighters the best they can be will continue to be his mission.

"Probably the downside of my position is I don't get to spend as much time on the trucks as I used to," said Ply.

September is National Campus Fire Safety Month.  Students will be asked to do some online training. That data will show Purdue Firefighters where future training should be concentrated.