A final farewell for Miami-Dade Fire Captain Bill Gustin, who died on March 16 after taking his own life. NBC6’s Laura Rodriguez has more on the ceremony and the strong messages by speakers about mental health.
Family, friends and fellow firefighters said their final goodbyes to a veteran Miami-Dade Fire Rescue captain who died last month.
Capt. William "Bill" Gustin was a fire veteran of nearly 50 years and had joined the department in 1978, where he rose through several ranks.
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WATCH HEREGustin died on March 16 after taking his own life.
On Tuesday, hundreds of people filled the Kaseya Center in Downtown Miami to honor his life. His children were present as well as firefighters and police officers from across the state.
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Gustin was involved in training throughout his career and was widely regarded as one of the most knowledgeable fire instructors in the industry.
Gustin is the second Miami-Dade Firefighter to die by suicide within a one-year period. In July, Lt. Alex Acosta took his life.
Acosta's wife Carolyn was present at Tuesday's event and spoke about the urgent need for better mental health support for first responders.
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"This career and profession does have a heavy toll on their mental health that if you don't early on how to take care of it, it will affect you and you won't make it to retirement," Carolyn Acosta said.
