By Jan Carlo Anolin
The late Lakers legend Kobe Bryant and his 13-year-old daughter Gianna were reportedly laid to rest during a private ceremony on Friday, February 7, 2020.
Flowers and photos of Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna "Gigi" are placed near the Staples Center to pay tribute after a helicopter crash killed the retired basketball star and his daughter, in Los Angeles, California, U.S., January 28, 2020. (REUTERS / Kyle Grillot)
FOX 11 was able to obtain a copy of Kobe’s death certificate and provided more details on the burial.
According to the death certificate, the remains were transferred to Pacific View Memorial Park and Mortuary in Corona Del Mar, California. The said agency handles the funeral arrangements for the Bryant family.
It also states that Kobe died in a “commercial helicopter crash” with the official cause of death as “blunt trauma.” The “time interval between onset and death” was cited as “rapid.”
The death certificate also indicates that Kobe was an “author, producer and athlete” and became part of the entertainment industry for 24 years.
Kobe and Gianna were among the nine victims who perished in a helicopter crash in Calabasas, California. They were scheduled for a game at the Mamba Sports Academy when the accident happened.
Gianna's teammates Alyssa Altobelli and Payton Chester, Alyssa's parents John and Keri Altobelli, Payton's mother Sarah Chester, basketball coach Christina Mauser and pilot Ara Zobayan also died in the crash.
Harbor Day School, which is just a few steps away from the Pacific View Memorial Park, retired Gianna’s No. 2 jersey last Wednesday.
Vanessa Bryant, Kobe's widow, announced in an Instagram post Friday that a public memorial service is set at the Staples Center on the morning of Feb. 24.
https://www.instagram.com/p/B8Rk8gHDUq7/
The date "02/24/2020" for the "celebration of life" carries a symbolism -- with Kobe wearing the No. 24 jersey in the later stages of his career, Gianna with No. 2 and "20" as Kobe's service for the Lakers.
The National Transportation Safety Board on Friday disclosed in a preliminary report that the wreckage scene showed no evidence of engine failure.
The preliminary report was a summary of the investigators’ findings so far but a final report is expected to be completed in at least a year. (With reports from AFP and Reuters)