Public invited to funeral for Lynden fire chief

Heavy traffic is expected Saturday in Lynden as firefighters from around the state and nation gather for the funeral of Lynden Fire Chief Robert Spinner, who died while on duty last week.

As many as 1,000 people are expected to attend the 1 p.m. ceremony in the Expo Building at the Northwest Washington Fairgrounds, 1775 Front St. The memorial, with full fire service honors, will last about 90 minutes. A reception will follow.

Both are open to the public.

Spinner, 50, was a 25-year veteran who became Lynden’s interim chief in April after joining the department in 2010 as its assistant chief. He suffered an apparent heart attack while exercising Friday, becoming the 56th U.S. firefighter to die in the line of duty this year.

A procession of firefighting vehicles will escort the family from the downtown Lynden Fire station to the fairgrounds at 11:45 a.m. The procession will go to Grover Street from Station 75 at 215 4th St.; turning east on Grover Street to 1st Street; turning south on 1st Street to Front Street; and heading west on Front Street to the fairgrounds.

Traffic delays are expected downtown and near the fairgrounds. Fire departments will be using gate 8 off Kok Road to enter the fairgrounds.

This story was originally published July 20, 2017 at 5:00 AM with the headline "Public invited to funeral for Lynden fire chief."