Todd LeDuc—retired chief, regular Fire Engineering contributor, FDIC International presenter, and editor of Surviving the Fire Service—was recently recognized by the Broward County (FL) Fire Chiefs Association with their Donald DiPetrillo Lifetime Achievement Award. The award was presented recently at the 24th annual First There, First Care Conference & the Gathering of Eagles meeting held at the Seminole Hard Rock in Hollywood, Florida.
LeDuc spent nearly 30 years in the Broward County (FL) fire service, retiring as executive assistant fire chief. During that time he headed efforts to lead the agency to become the first department in South Florida accredited by the Commission of Ambulance Service Accreditation and later the Commission on Fire Accreditation, where he has served as a peer reviewer for both commissions as well as for the Commission on Professional Credentialing. He holds a masters degree in executive fire service leadership and has been designated multiple times as a Chief Fire Officer as well as a Fellow in the Institute of Fire Engineers. LeDuc also has published extensively on EMS innovations, leadership, and health, wellness, and safety. He has been elected and served on the International Association of Fire Chief’s Safety, Health & Survival Section for nearly two decades. He has implemented proven innovations to enhance firefighter health and wellness and was previously recognized by the International Association of Firefighters Local 4321 for these efforts.
LeDuc has served as an advisor to the First Responder Center of Excellence as well as the NFPA technical committee on first responder occupational health. Over the years, he has instructed fire rescue and EMS personnel at Broward Community College, the University of Miami School of Medicine Gordon simulation Lab and Anna Maria College. He has also been a charter member of the Florida Firefighters Health & Safety collaborative and remains active to this day. LeDuc also has served as a peer reviewer for FEMA Assistance to Firefighter Grants and was successful in securing millions of dollars of FEMA grant funds to enhance first responder operations, safety, and training in Broward County.
In 2019, Chief LeDuc joined Life Scan Wellness Centers as their Chief Strategy Officer. LeDuc served as a Board of Director for the YMCA of South Florida and the Health Mothers, Healthy Babies Coalition of Broward County. He also created the National Surviving the Fire Service conference which was an annual gathering in partnership with Nova Southeastern University. He continues to give back as a contributing author in the recently released Fire Engineering book, 101 Tips to Ace Your Promotional Exam.
