Firefighter - 2020 - 39

2020 FLORIDA FIREFIGHTER

39

A MAN WHO MADE HISTORY RETIRES
Chief Melvin Stone began his
career with the Tampa Fire Department
in 1981 as a Tailboard Firefighter/EMT.
In just five years, Stone was promoted
to the rank of a Fire/Arson Investigator,
and served as a Fire Safety Inspector
within the Fire Prevention Bureau. Stone
also became the first black Public Affairs
Officer at Tampa Fire Rescue, a position
requiring him to prepare press releases,
coordinate and direct all department press
conferences, and serve as the department
spokesperson.
Then in 1996, Stone served as the
Fire Marshal for the City of Tampa, making
history as the first African American to hold
that position in office. In that role he was the Regulatory
Administrator for all life safety concerns, and was charged with
the responsibility of enforcing the Florida Statutes, City Charter,
City Ordinances, and all applicable and adopted Fire Codes
pertaining to life safety. As Fire Marshal, he was responsible for
directing the activities of the Arson Investigation Division, the law
enforcement unit within the department. Stone played a pivotal role
in developing Tampa's entertainment Mecca, Ybor City, Downtown
Tampa's Commercial/Business District, Channelside District, and
the completion of the NFL's Tampa Bay Buccaneers Raymond
James Stadium, along with developing a revised fee schedule
concept that now generates millions of dollars for the City of
Tampa, enhancing the quality of life for all of its citizens and visitors.
A signature moment in Stone's career was witnessing a
grandmother lose not only her home, but four of her grandchildren
in a tragic fire. Fire Marshal Stone was so deeply moved he
enlisted the support of his department and the community, and
coordinated the effort to provide the burial cost for the deceased
children. He not only raised enough money to cover the funeral
costs, but was able to place her in a new home and purchase
new furniture. He then launched "Operation Impact," a smoke
detector installation program, targeting the lower socio-economic
neighborhoods. Once a month he, along with his employees,
would select a neighborhood and walk door to door installing
smoke detectors, providing fire safety literature, and answering
any questions or concerns the residents had. He was determined
to eliminate fire fatalities within the City of Tampa. Marshal Stone
even built the "Fire Explorer's Program," where he introduced

underachieving or troubled kids to the Fire
Service, and produced hundreds of positive
and productive adults.
In 1999, Stone made history again
as the first African American in the State
of Florida selected to serve as Chief of the
Fire and Arson Investigations Bureau for
the Division of State Fire Marshal. In 2001,
Chief Stone directed the Office of Space
Utilization and Analysis at Florida Agricultural
& Mechanical University (FAMU) and served
as Adjunct Professor at FAMU's College of
Arts & Science in the History and Political
Science department until 2007. That year,
he was selected to establish and direct the
newly created Tallahassee Fire Academy. This
historic endeavor was a first for Tallahassee Community College
(TCC) and the City of Tallahassee. After a national search, Chief
Stone was selected as the first Fire Academy Director in the History
of TCC and the capital city of Tallahassee, Florida.
In 2016, Chief Stone was appointed as the Assistant Director
of the Division of State Fire Marshal, becoming the second highest
ranking fire official, and the highest ranking African American fire
official in the state of Florida. Chief Stone will retire July 31, 2020
and will remain very active within the Tallahassee and Tampa
Bay Community, chairing fundraisers, mentoring, volunteering,
and serving on numerous boards. He is married to his wife,
Pamela, of 43 years. They have two daughters, Melva and Kyrstin,
and four grandchildren, Alana, Christopher, Dekoda and Alton.
Congratulations Chief Stone on an amazing career and a welldeserved retirement. FSFA

Left: Tailboard Firefighter/EMT Stone with other Tampa Fire Rescue Firefighters in 1981.
Right: Stones first day as a Fire Investigator in 1984.
Firefighter - 2020

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