MO Chief Killed in Crash 'Served Very Selflessly'

Bryant Gladney is being remembered for his selfless service and care for others.

Gladney, a Boone County assistant fire chief, was killed by a tractor-trailer Wednesday while responding to an early-morning accident on Interstate 70 east of Columbia.

"He cared about people," said Gale Blomenkamp, a fellow assistant chief with the Boone County Fire Protection District, while fighting back tears. "He took care of the people that he worked with and the people that worked for him.

"He had a great sense of humor. He could give it just as well as he could take it."

Wednesday marked the fire district's first line-of-duty death.

Gladney worked in emergency response in mid- Missouri for more than three decades, including 25 years for the district, Blomenkamp said.

He began his career as a firefighter at Boone County Fire Station No. 1 in 1986 and was promoted to lieutenant of the same station in 1994. In 2011, his focus shifted to EMS education program manager before being promoted to captain in 2015. Last year, he was given the title of assistant chief and was asked to lead the EMS Bureau.

He assumed responsibilities for the district's training bureau in 2021, serving as bureau director.

He also served as one of four fire district duty chiefs.

"He served very selflessly," Blomenkamp said of his colleague. "He was well-known throughout the first-response community."

Gladney was an original member of Missouri Task Force 1, deploying to New York City after 9/11 and helping after Hurricane Isabel in 2003. The task force, managed by the fire district, is one of 28 urban search and rescue teams in the United States.

Fire departments across the state and beyond extended their condolences and support to the fire district, even as far as New Mexico. An announcement about Gladney on the district's Facebook page garnered over 600 comments and over 2,500 shares by Wednesday afternoon.

The Columbia Fire Department was stepping in Wednesday to cover calls on the east side of the fire district, Blomenkamp said.

"Our thoughts and prayers go out to the Boone County Fire Protection District during this difficult time," the city fire department wrote on social media.

Brent Brooks was a student in Gladney's EMT training courses in 1998 and worked with him through many other training sessions during Brooks' time with the fire district.

"Bryant was a good man," Brooks wrote on Facebook. "He always made me laugh and went out of his way to make sure the firefighters were taken care of."

"I've known Bryant since my early days in the Sheriff's Department," John Fields wrote in a comment on the fire district's Facebook post. "We worked many calls together. It's like losing a family member."

Down to his final moments, Gladney was furthering the legacy he now leaves behind.

"We would like for everyone to keep Bryant's family in their thoughts and prayers," Fire Chief Scott Olsen said.