Pahranagat Valley Fire District was established in 1974 to provide emergency services to the rural community of Alamo Nevada and its surrounding areas. Pahranagat Valley is located on the southwestern end of Lincoln County Nevada which is almost 11,000 square miles in size. This large response area for emergency services is covered by (5) Fire districts along with EMS, Law Enforcement and Search and Rescue.
Pahranagat Valley is the southernmost Fire District in the County.
P. O. Box 540
Alamo, NV 89001
Phone # (775) 238 – 6889
Fire Chief
Derek Bowman currently serves as the Fire Chief of the Pahranagat Valley Fire District, bringing with him a deep commitment to community safety, operational excellence, and public service leadership. A long-time resident of Alamo, Nevada, Derek has been an active force in Lincoln County’s emergency services for years — from firefighting and rescue operations to emergency preparedness and cross-agency coordination.
As a volunteer firefighter and former Fire Safety Training Officer, Derek led initiatives that directly strengthened the district’s operational readiness, including implementing ISO compliance systems, launching high-angle rescue capabilities with Captain Walch, and developing online training and tracking platforms. His leadership was pivotal in expanding the local EMT resource pool by coordinating emergency vehicle operations training for ambulance drivers.
Beyond his work in the fire service, Derek has played a key role in broader county emergency operations. He created and administered Lincoln County’s State Certified Reserve Police Officer Program — becoming a NV Post Certified Reserve Police Officer himself — and helped secure over $170,000 in grant funding through his work with the Lincoln County Emergency Planning Committee. He also spearheaded the implementation of the ISpy Fire software platform, enhancing emergency response effectiveness for both LCSO and regional fire departments.
Professionally, Derek has over two decades of leadership experience in enterprise technology, sales, and operations, including international expansion and strategic planning across high-stakes industries. He is known for his servant-leader mindset, ability to foster cross-functional collaboration, and a results-driven approach to solving complex challenges.
Derek’s appointment as Fire Chief reflects his unwavering dedication to life safety, his deep understanding of emergency service infrastructure, and his vision to ensure the Pahranagat Valley Fire District continues to grow in service of the local community.
Deputy Chief
Richard Higbee serves as the Deputy Chief of the Pahranagat Valley Volunteer Fire District. He joined the district in 1982. Upon joining, he attended a basic EMT class that was sponsored by the Caliente Fire Department. After completion, he responded to medical and fire calls. In 1987 he was selected out of approximately 7000 applicants to attend the Clark County Fire Department training academy.
Higbee spent 30 years as a career structural firefighter, completing all the continuing education that goes along with a growing city and very progressive department. In 1989 he became an EMT- Intermediate which now has become advanced EMT or AEMT. He remained certified until 2025 with 43 years of experience in emergency medical incidents. His training certified him with the State of Nevada as Firefighter 1, Firefighter 2, state required driver training for emergency vehicles and fire apparatus, EMT Instructor, state fire officer certification, state certified fire instructor, hazmat and other classes. As a Clark County firefighter, he was required to complete ICS training, ICS 100, ICS 200, ICS 300, ICS 700, and ICS 800.
During his time with Clark County, he remained active with the Pahranagat Valley Fire District responding to calls on his days off. He was installed as acting Fire Chief in the late 1980’s when then Chief Press Walch was recovering from surgery. He spent some years on the Fire Board and was Chairman for around 5 years.
In 2002 Higbee took the S-130 and S-190 Wildland Firefighter certification; after completing the Pack Test, he was deployed with the BLM incident management teams as a line EMT.
Chief Higbee has spent his entire career in the fire and EMT service and even after 44 years he still loves the job and hopes to pass on some life experiences to the firefighters of the district so they can enjoy a long life, after a dangerous career fighting fires and working vehicle accidents.
Captain
Kenyon Walch is currently serving as a captain with the Pahranagat Valley Volunteer Fire District since 2021. He started serving the community in 2008 as a volunteer. A long-time resident of Alamo, Nevada, Kenyon has been an active member of the community in Lincoln County.
Kenyon’s professional career has led him to being in Law Enforcement in Lincoln County where he served in multiple leadership roles and obtaining numerous grants for the County and for P.V.V.F.D.
Kenyon is currently employed as a professional contracted firefighter. He is certified as an EMT, Firefighter 1 and Firefighter 2, Airport Rescue Firefighter, Hazmat Tech, Confined Space, High Angle Rope Rescue, Wildland Firefighting and multiple other certifications.