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Funeral held for La Crosse firefighter killed in crash

Posted at 1:16 PM, Dec 19, 2013
and last updated 2013-12-19 13:16:23-05

MECKLENBURG COUNTY, Va. (WTVR) — Firefighters from across the state came together to remember a fallen hero Thursday morning.

CBS 6 senior reporter Wayne Covil reports more than 50 fire departments from across Virginia attended 25-year-old Josh Smith’s funeral at 11 a.m. at the RZUA Headquarters and Conference Center in La Crosse. Smith will be buried at Crestview Memorial Park.

Smith, a volunteer firefighter for the La Crosse Volunteer Fire Department, was killed Saturday afternoon in a single-car accident on Rocky Branch Road in Mecklenburg County as he was responding to a fire call.

“Since day one, he was a dedicated volunteer, ” La Crosse Volunteer Fire Department Chief Mike Clark told Wayne Covil on Sunday.

Officials said Smith, who grew up in the area, was liked and well-known in the community.

Mecklenburg County Sheriff Bobby Hawkins told Covil that Smith was “a fine young man” who loved being a firefighter.

Smith is the second La Crosse firefighter to die in the line of duty.