Many remember Hialeah firefighter and hazmat unit member Chris Villa as brave even in his final moments.
Last Friday a van plowed into Villa's home on NW 5th Avenue and Opa-locka Boulevard after an accident at an intersection.
Villa was fixing a fence in his backyard and the last thing he did was push his wife out of the way of the oncoming vehicle. Villa later died at the hospital.
"To push the wife out of the way and take the brunt of the impact from the vehicle is just, it tells you right there what kind of person he was," said Lt. Jose Lorenz.
Get South Florida local news, weather forecasts and entertainment stories to your inbox. Sign up for NBC South Florida newsletters.
Dozens of firefighters attended the mass at St. Michael's Catholic Church on West Flagler in Miami. A procession of fire engines and rescue trucks followed Villa to the cemetery.
Villa was just six months away from retiring from the Hialeah Fire Department. He had spent almost 25 years as a firefighter.
His wife and son are both firefighters in Miami-Dade.
