The casket of 25-year-old Caeden Laffan was loaded onto a fire truck and driven to Alameda where it passed under a giant American flag hanging down from fire engine ladders.
During a ceremony inside the USS Hornet, Laffan was remembered as a natural athlete who worked hard to follow his dad into the fire department - becoming an paramedic and learning Chinese.
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His brother who is now a firefighter cadet, said Laffan became an important figure in his life after their father died of a heart attack.
"As a firefighter he embodied the very essence of bravery, selflessness and devotion to duty. His empathy always astounded me. He saw people not as they were but as he wanted them to be," said Cooper Laffan.
Laffan drowned in San Diego before the start of the firefighter olympics.