Angelika Firefighters are highly regarded in the USA. They are generally celebrated as heroes who do not hesitate to risk their lives. This perception was further reinforced, especially after September 11, the attacks in New York and on the Pentagon, because it was firefighters who bravely entered the World Trade Center to save lives, and some of them lost their own lives in the process. In contrast, many Americans have a more conflicted relationship with police officers.
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In early June, two firefighters, Anthony Valerio and Vincent Perez, died in San Francisco during an operation as they attempted to extinguish a house fire in the Diamond Heights neighborhood. The hillside location of the house, a typical scenario in hilly San Francisco, proved fatal for the firefighters. The house, which appeared to be a two-story building from the street, had two additional floors below at the rear slope, causing the firefighters who entered through the street entrance to be above the raging fire. They were trapped by the flames when the intense heat caused all objects to explosively catch fire.
Now you might say, "Yeah, yeah, that's tragic, but why are you writing about it?" Patience, patience. The state-like funeral of the firefighters did surprise me, though. The memorial service took place at St. Mary's Cathedral in San Francisco, and not only did firefighters and rescue workers from all parts of the USA attend, but also leading Californian politicians. All the local TV stations also broadcast the memorial service.
As in Rundbrief 02/2006 As previously reported, all of San Francisco's cemeteries are located outside the city gates. Therefore, the coffins had to be transported from downtown to Colma (about 20 kilometers south) to the "Holy Cross" cemetery, along with all the mourners. The procession consisted of an apparently endless line of cars. The city officials quickly closed several streets in San Francisco and rerouted some bus lines on the day of the funeral. Even Freeway 280, one of the main highways south of San Francisco, was closed for several hours, and this happened on a Friday during peak rush hour. Anyone who knows how traffic jams occur during peak times on regular weekdays can roughly imagine the impact. But people were not only patiently stuck in traffic; many lined the streets to pay their last respects to the firefighters. The city had lost two heroes.