Firefighters, Family Mourn Crash Victim, 11

Los Angeles Fire Chief William Bamattre, addressing about 400 mourners Tuesday at the funeral of 11-year-old Norma Vides, offered her family the comfort he said rescuers had been unable to give the Sun Valley girl when their helicopter fell from the sky.

“A week ago on Monday, Norma needed our help,” Bamattre told the crowd packing Santa Rosa Catholic Church in San Fernando. “We responded to give her help and comfort--a help and comfort that we could not provide for reasons beyond our control.”

Bamattre also promised that the girl would be honored each year when the department pays tribute to the three firefighters who died trying to save her on their way to Childrens Hospital, after she was critically injured in an early morning car crash.

“Each year from this day forward,” he said, “we will also honor and speak of Norma.”

Bamattre was joined by dozens of other firefighters, all in their formal black uniforms--including a battalion chief who said they regarded the ill-fated flight as a mission unaccomplished.

“We had an incomplete mission,” said Battalion Chief Daryl Arbuthnott, whose crews responded to the car accident that set the tragic chain of events in motion. “It was devastating to us all.”

Norma was buried as rain fell Tuesday at San Fernando Mission Cemetery. Her mother, Genoveva Anaya, and father, Alfredo Vides--who obtained a special visa to travel from El Salvador for the funeral--shivered at the graveside, fighting back tears and the cold.

“It’s still very hard,” said Alfredo, 48, who has been in El Salvador for a year to obtain proper immigration papers.

The car accident occurred early March 23, as Anaya, 44--a Salvadoran immigrant who worked at two convalescent hospitals to raise five children alone--and her family began their daily routine.

The family car--packed with the children ranging in age from 5 to 17--left their apartment on Sunland Park Drive heading to Mt. Gleason Middle School, where Norma was a seventh-grader. The car was being driven by Genoveva’s nephew, Pedro, 17, who was living with her temporarily.

According to authorities, a city truck picking up recyclables was rear-ended by a sport utility vehicle. Shortly after, a second city trash truck that had stopped to offer assistance was hit by Genoveva’s car.

Norma, who was not wearing a seat belt, was badly hurt. A Fire Department helicopter crew arrived to take her to Childrens Hospital Los Angeles.

The helicopter developed mechanical problems and crashed in Griffith Park about 7:40 a.m. Also killed were paramedics Michael A. Butler, 33, and Eric F. Reiner, 33, and flight crew member Michael McComb, 48.

Pilot Steven L. Robinson and crew member Dennis Silgen, who survived the helicopter crash, have improved to guarded but stable condition at Los Angeles County-USC Medical Center, said Capt. Steve Ruda, a Fire Department spokesman.

On Tuesday, mourners shielding themselves from the rain and wind began trickling into the church at 9 a.m. for Norma’s funeral. Norma’s family followed the white casket as it was brought into the church.

“We come to God with questions,” said Father Paul Wilhelm, speaking directly to the family in Spanish. “Why weren’t you there last week protecting our sister, our daughter, our brothers?”

Outside, as people started to gather for the procession to the cemetery, some firefighters reflected on the tragedy.

Even as the helicopter was going down, Arbuthnott said, the paramedics tried to protect Norma.

“They all laid on top of her to cover her up,” he said. “They tried all the way to the end.”

Recounting crew member Silgen’s recollection of the crash, Ruda said: “When they knew they were going to crash, they tightened the little girl” to the stretcher.

Norma’s family gathered under a cemetery awning--the coffin, with flowers around it, in front of them.

Ruda said Silgen sent a message to Norma’s family for the funeral, which said: “Don’t lose hope.”

After the casket was lowered, Alfredo Vides approached. He poured the first shovel of dirt on the coffin and slowly walked back to the crowd.