Funeral Procession Begins Sunday For San Diego Firefighter

SAN DIEGO, CA -- A five-county funeral procession will be held Sunday for a San Diego firefighter who died battling the Thomas Fire in Ventura County. Cory Iverson, 32, was a fire engineer for Cal Fire San Diego. He was killed Thursday near Fillmore, falling victim to thermal injuries and smoke inhalation, according to autopsy results released Saturday by the Ventura County Medical Examiner's Office.

The procession in his honor will begin at 10 a.m. Sunday at the Ventura County Medical Center and travel through the Los Angeles area before stopping at a temporary staging point in Chino around noon, according to Cal Fire. It will continue from there down the Interstate 15 corridor before concluding at a Miramar mortuary just after 2 p.m.

Cal Fire San Diego spokesman Jon Heggie described Iverson to the San Diego Union-Tribune as "the kind of firefighter you could rely on."

A GoFundMe campaign created for Iverson's family called him "a true hero to our Southern California community." By Sunday, it had raised more than $325,000 -- surpassing an initial goal of $150,000, which has been raised at least twice to $500,000.

Iverson, who had been with Cal Fire since 2009, left behind a wife and a 2-year-old daughter. His wife, Ashley Iverson, is also pregnant with the couple's second child.

A memorial for Iverson will be held at The Rock Church in Point Loma at 10 a.m. on Saturday, Dec. 23.

--City News Service

--Photos: People honor Cory Iverson on state Route 76 at Interstate 15 during the processional, Dec. 17, 2017. Photos by Haylee Avants

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