Residents of a Wisconsin city have paid their final respects to a firefighter killed in the line of duty.
Hundreds lined a procession route for Mitch Lundgaard, 36, that wound through Appleton on Monday, starting at a funeral home and ending at Appleton Alliance Church, where a visitation was held. Lundgaard will be taken back to the funeral home following an evening service, which is not open to the public.
Lundgaard's family released a statement saying the "outpouring of support" from the community in the past week "has been astonishing to us." Sheila Stojak of Grand Chute told the Post Crescent she came to "honor someone that's given his life for all of us, so that we can be safe."
Retired firefighter Linda Femal said the death of Lundgaard, a 14-year veteran of the Appleton Fire Department, hits "close to home."
"You never think maybe you can die in a fire, but not a shooting. You're just going to a medical call and he ends up losing his life," said Femal, who attended the procession to show her support.