Assistant Fire Chief Carlos Duran has over 32 years of experience in emergency services and has been with the St Lucie County Fire District since March 1984. He holds a Master of Public Administration Degree and a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Organizational Management, is a graduate of the Executive Fire Officer Program (EFOP) at the National Fire Academy in Emmitsburg, Maryland and received the Chief Fire Officer Designation from the Commission on Professional Credentialing.

Chief Duran oversees the Operations Division which is where the bulk of the services offered by the District are carried out. These services include Emergency Medical Services (EMS), fire suppression, Communications Division (911), Air Medical Services, staffing and the Special Operations Team. In addition, he oversees the Fire Prevention Division, the Training and Safety Division, Public Education, Buildings and Grounds, Honor Guard and the Explorers Program.

The Operations Division has over 475 Firefighters assigned to its 17 fire stations located throughout the county and an Air Rescue base protecting over 271,000 residents and responsible for 614 square miles of emergency response. The Fire District received over 38,000 emergency calls in 2010.