A sombre procession was held to honour fallen Californian fire engineer Cory Iverson on Sunday, December 17, after he died fighting the state’s ongoing wildfires.

Officers from Murrieta Police Department joined to pay tribute following the death of the 32-year-old from Escondido. This video shows its officers saluting on an overpass across Freeway 15 in Murrieta as a procession passed underneath. The video carried the caption: “Our hearts are heavy as we wish for comfort and healing for Cory’s family, coworkers and all the fire crews working the Thomas Fire, including some of our own.”

The procession began in Ventura and passed through Los Angeles and Orange counties, KTLA5 reported. Iverson died on December 14 while battling a huge blaze near Fillmore in Ventura County, NBC reported.

There were new evacuation orders in Santa Barbara County on Saturday, December 16, as the fire looked set to spread to Montecito, the Los Angeles Times reported. About 1,600 residents had been told they must leave their homes, while an additional 34,000 residents remained under a voluntary evacuation order, the newspaper reported. About 8,300 firefighters had been drafted to tackle the fire, the largest mobilization of firefighters to fight a wildfire in California’s history.

The fire had burned up about 259,000 acres, according to Newsweek, making it the third-largest wildfire in California’s history. Credit: Facebook/Murrieta Police Department via Storyful