Roll of Honor
Incident
Sergeant Hugh Purdy and Officer Michael Conley, of the Estes Park Police Department, drowned while assisting victims of the Big Thompson Flood.
Sergeant Purdy had been stopping traffic from entering a flooded area when when his vehicle was swept away by flood waters near Drake, Colorado.
Sergeant Purdy had served with the Colorado State Patrol for 26 years.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-CO-E60A80AE- Stewardship
- Maintained by NeuraWeb Global Inc.
- Added to badge.nw
- April 2, 2026
- Last updated
- July 23, 2026
Honored here by 1 sentinel - 1 tribute.
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Tributes
26 years. You could have gone home.
Sergeant Purdy gave the Colorado State Patrol 26 years. Still answering calls at the end.
Thank you for your service to the people of Colorado. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Sergeant Purdy.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Sergeant Willis Hugh Purdy is one of 10,088 officers lost to accidents in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 31% of all 32,508 officers honored here.
In CO, 101 of 360 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 28.1% of this state's fallen. That is 2.9 percentage points below the national rate of 31%.
At Colorado State Patrol, 19 of 30 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 63.3% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Willis Hugh Purdy's cause is highlighted.
How Willis Hugh Purdy Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. Willis Hugh Purdy is highlighted in Jul.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
29 officers from Colorado State Patrol are honored on badge.nw. Showing the 16 most recent.
