GREENSBORO, N.C. — Former Greensboro Fire Chief Ray K. Flowers died Saturday, according to a release from the Greensboro Fire Department. He was 83.
Fire officials said Flowers died after battling an illness for a short period of time.
Flowers served GFD for more than 37 years. He joined after graduating from North Carolina A&T State University.
"It is a sad day for the City of Greensboro and the Greensboro Fire Department," Greensboro Fire Chief Jim Robinson said in the release. "Chief Flowers represents everything that is right with public safety and the Greensboro Fire Department.
Flowers started at Station 4 in 1961 after finishing training and was part of the first group of Black firefighters hired to the GFD. He earned several promotions throughout his career. He was named the city's first Black fire chief in 1993. He retired in 1998.
Flowers spent the early years of his career as a driver at Station 7. GFD dedicated the house to him in December 2021.