David Dittman

Chief David Dittman was the Firefighter of the Quarter for the first quarter of 2017. He has distinguished himself throughout his 20 year career with his performance on duty and his generosity off the job. His dedication to Tampa Fire Rescue is second to none.

Chief Dittman has served as a Paramedic and a Lieutenant in the Rescue Division, as a Tactical Medical Response Team member, as a current member of the Disaster Response Team, as a founding member of the Smallpox Task Force, as the Tampa Fire Rescue new recruit coordinator, and as a community Emergency Response Team coordinator.

Chief Dittman is state certified as a Fire Officer, Hazardous Materials Technician, Live Fire Training Instructor and has served as Tampa Fire’s Burn Master. He is also a certified Fire Instructor III, and teaches with Hillsborough community College and Tampa Fire’s Learey Fire Academy. He holds a B.A. in Business Management from Northwood UniversiTampa Police Department and has represented Tampa Fire Rescue as a speaker around the country.

 Over the past year, Chief Dittman secured a $25,000 grant from Fire House Subs to purchase state of the art extrication tools. He also arranged for union members to accompany a local radio station and the Meals on Wheels program to install smoke detectors in homes of the elderly and disabled. He has served as an executive board member of the IAFF local 754 for ten years. In addition, Chief Dittman, his wife Ellen and daughter Leah are responsible for raising over $1.4 million for Shriner’s Hospital over the last twelve years. He is an active member and serves on the Board of Governors for Tampa’s Shriner’s Hospital. Last Christmas, he orchestrated the donations of nineteen firefighters in support of St. Jude’s Hospital. These actions inspire his colleagues and come naturally to Chief Dittman.

For his continued excellence and dedication to helping others, Chief David Dittman was selected as the Firefighter of the Quarter for the first quarter of 2017.