Firefighters from more than 20 area departments took part in a funeral procession on Saturday for Wabash Fire Protection District volunteer firefighter Mehdi Mourad, 21, of Mattoon. The procession traveled from the funeral service at New Hope Church in Effingham to the burial site at Neoga Memorial Cemetery.
EFFINGHAM â The funeral for fallen volunteer firefighter Mehdi Mourad of Mattoon, who was from Morocco, drew a long procession of area firefighters and an online international audience on Saturday.
Mehdi Mourad PROVIDED PHOTO
The line of firetrucks included multiple units from the Wabash Fire Protection District in rural Mattoon, which 21-year-old Mourad decided to join this summer after arriving in the United States to study automotive technology at Lake Land College.