Steve Riska started his career in 1996 as a firefighter with the Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department. He quickly earned his promotion to Engineer, and in 2003, he achieved the rank of Lieutenant. Four years later, he earned the rank of Captain, and then District Chief in 2017. Throughout his career with JFRD, Riska has demonstrated proven leadership in multiple areas.

From 2009 to 2016, Riska was the senior Captain on the Hazardous Materials Team, a role in which he coordinated all maintenance, training and procurement for this specialty team. From 2016 to 2019, Riska served as Deputy Division Chief where he implemented policies, procedures and protocols to enhance the Fire Operations Division, which is JFRD's largest division in terms of staffing and equipment. During this time, he also directed the Ocean Rescue team and all its personnel. Riska holds 17 Materials Certificates, including Live Fire Burn Training Instructor, Paramedic and Incident Response to Terrorist Bombings. He was appointed Interim Operations Division Chief in July 2019.