Edward H. McCormack Jr., 67, of Hopkinton, Mass., died Tuesday, April 11. Perhaps best known within the fire service as the former executive director of the International Society of Fire Service Instructors, McCormack was also a retired fire chief and creator of the Massachusetts Fire Academy.

McCormack started in the fire service when he was a teenager, and he became the youngest chief in Massachusetts when he took over the department at Cushing Hospital in 1956.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in McCormack's name to the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation.