MADISON HEIGHTS, Mich. – A new foundation is looking to help Michigan’s firefighters in a way that has not been addressed before now.
It could help save lives. Its goal is to detect underlying heart conditions -- and do so for free.
Madison Heights Fire Department Captain Jeffrey Brozich died in his sleep a year ago. He had a heart attack while on duty. His body was discovered when a call came and he didn’t respond.
His wife Lindsay is a Madison Heights police officer. She was awake that night and saw a call go out on a specialized phone app.
“I saw the medical run come in that he was supposed to go to. I sent him a text. I said I can’t sleep -- and not two minutes later was the call for him,” she said.
That’s how she discovered her husband had died.
“He ate healthy. He worked out the day that he passed,” she said.
The No. 1 cause of death for on-duty firefighters is a heart attack. Brozich had an undiagnosed underlying condition, arterial sclerotic heart disease.
On Tuesday (March 1), his friends and family announced the formation of the Jeffrey Brozich Healthy Heart Foundation. The foundation is in its early stages and needs support.