Columbus firefighters man Cincinnati firehouses

OAKLEY, Ohio (Angenette Levy) -- Firehouses throughout Cincinnati were staffed by firefighters from departments around the area and from Columbus during funeral services for Fire Apparatus Operator, Daryl Gordon. 126 Columbus firefighters came to Cincinnati to staff firehouses starting at 6 a.m. at the request of the Cincinnati Fire Dept. "Everybody up there in Columbus didn't even think twice when we were asked if we could come down and cover for Cincinnati when this happened. Just covering for our brothers," said Capt. Shawn Funk of the Columbus Fire Dept. It was the second time that Capt. Funk had manned a Cincinnati firehouse so firefighters could attend a funeral. He and Battalion Chief Jack Reall came to Cincinnati in 2003 for the funeral of firefighter Oscar Armstrong. "We're not here to bring any attention to ourselves," Batallion Chief Reall said. "We're here to make sure that those guys can do what they need to do so that their grieving process is complete. That's what we want to do.A few firefighters stayed behind at Station #31 so the Columbus firefighters would know how to get around the area. "The brotherhood and the love that they've shown is tremendous. It really is," said Cincinnati firefighter Steve Grau. His brothers from Columbus helped clean the firehouse and cooked lunch. Grau remembers working with Daryl Gordon when he started at the fire department six years ago. He said Gordon wasn't afraid to do the grunt work. "He was a guy that had 25 years on at the time. He acted like a guy that only had one year on the fire department and he treated me like a guy that had 20 years on the fire department," Grau said. Battalion Chief Reall said Columbus and Cincinnati's fire departments operate similarly. Cincinnati Chief Richard Braun worked in Columbus for 30 years. The loss of Daryl Gordon has reverberated around the country. "Us being down here, it gives us the opportunity to grieve along with Cincinnati for somebody that we lost. We feel like we lost a brother," Reall said. Another 100 to 200 Columbus firefighters took part in Daryl Gordon's funeral procession. Watch F.A.O. Gordon's graveside service here. Follow Angenette Levy on Twitter @angenette5, and LIKE her on Facebook.Follow us on Twitter @Local12 and LIKE us on Facebook for updates!