January 17 marked Port Orange (FL) Fire Chief Thomas Weber’s 35th year in the fire service. Following in his father’s footsteps, Weber’s firefighting career began in 1977 with the City of Sunrise, Florida. His career path then took him to Ft. Lauderdale, and from there he became the fire chief for the Town of Manchester, Connecticut. Chief Weber became the fire chief for the City of Port Orange in September 2003. Under his leadership, the department and its members have received many accolades—EMS Provider of the Year in 2007, Fire Marshal of the Year 2007, Paramedic of the Year 2008, and Public Fire and Life Safety Educator of the Year 2010. He will retire on March 31, 2011.
Chief Weber is a graduate of the National Fire Academy’s Executive Fire Officer Program and has received accreditation as a Chief Fire Officer. He holds a Master’s Degree in Public Administration. He served as President of the Connecticut Fire Chiefs’ Association (2002), and is the current President of the Florida Fire Chiefs’ Association. He was named “Rotarian of the Year 2008” by the Port Orange-South Daytona Rotary Club and “Florida Fire Chief of the Year 2008” by the State of Florida Cabinet and Florida Fire Chiefs’ Association. His plans for retirement include completing his term as President, consulting in the Public Safety field and sharing his experiences with the future emergency services leaders as an educator at the university level. He is looking forward to spending more time with his wife, Mary and three daughters Trudy, Sarah, and Michelle.
