On Tuesday, October 7, Hartford firefighter Kevin Bell answered his final alarm. He perished fighting a two-alarm blaze at a house on Blue Hills Avenue, just a block from Bell’s firehouse, Engine 16, Blue Hills Station. Monday morning, under cloudy skies, thousands of firefighters and friends gathered at First Cathedral in Bloomfield for funeral services for the fallen firefighter. He was buried at Mt. St. Benedict Cemetery in Bloomfield following the service.

“What is important to understand is that one of our own firefighters lost his life saving others,” said Hartford Fire Chief Carlos Huertas during his remarks at the service. “Firefighter Kevin Bell is a hero.”

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BLOOMFIELD, CT – 10.13.2014 Firefighter recruits from the Connecticut Fire Academy salute the casket of Hartford firefighter Kevin Bell at First Cathedral in Bloomfield. Bell perished in a blaze on Blue Hills Avenue last Tuesday night. Patrick Raycraft | praycraft@courant.com