A firefighter who died battling a house fire has been remembered as a man with a "vibrant spirit" who made the ultimate professional sacrifice.
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Michael Kidd, 51, died on December 12 after being struck by a falling wooden beam while fighting a blaze that engulfed the house at Grose Vale, in Sydney's outer northwest.
He was dragged from the house and colleagues tried to revive him, but he was pronounced dead at the scene.
Mr Kidd was laid to rest at St Monica's Catholic Church, Richmond, on Friday in a service attended by hundreds of mourners, including NSW Premier Chris Minns and Emergency Services Minister Jihad Dib.
His casket, draped in the Australian flag, was brought to the church on the back of a vintage fire engine as part of a Fire and Rescue NSW motorcade, accompanied by the strains of the agency's brass band.
Fire and Rescue NSW commissioner Jeremy Fewtrell paid tribute to the on-call Richmond Station 82 firefighter as a man who loved his job.
"Michael loved being a firefighter, whether that was with Fire and Rescue or Rural Fire Service, and he was bloody good at it," he told mourners.
"He juggled family, work and other commitments, despite all this he was still one of the most regular attendees at the fire station."
The lethal blaze was one of thousands Mr Kidd attended over his many years of service since starting as a rural firefighter in 1989, Mr Fewtrell said.
"While firefighting can be a dangerous activity that does not make it okay that we have lost Michael, it is not something that we just accept," he said.
"Michael has made the ultimate sacrifice.
"It is a sacrifice made not just by Michael but by his family, his fellow firefighters and his friends as we no longer have him."
Mr Kidd's younger sisters, Belinda and Elizabeth, remembered him for his "vibrant spirit" and love of family.
Speaking of the 51-year-old's children, Lachlan and Samantha, Belinda said "he supported their dreams and made sure he always had time for them".
Elizabeth the entire family loved and missed her brother, saying "every time we think of you we will smile".
Mr Kidd's wife Rebecca, whose eulogy was delivered by Fire and Rescue NSW chaplain Lyndsay Smith, said her husband "made the world a better place".
She remembered him as a man who could strike up a conversation with anyone, had a great passion for cars and who died doing what he loved.
"He will not be forgotten."
Australian Associated Press
