Major roads impacted for Josh Weissman’s funeral today

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2030
Major roads impacted for Josh Weissman’s funeral today
Roads will be closed intermittently throughout the day. (Cat VanVliet)
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Temporary but significant road closures are expected Thursday as thousands of mourners, public safety personnel and possibly 200 fire department vehicle will descend on Alexandria for the funeral of paramedic Josh Weissman, who died in the line of duty last week.

The 1 p.m. funeral at Beth El Hebrew Congregation and subsequent burial at Ivy Hill Cemetery will intermittently close the following roads throughout the day:

  • Janneys Lane from King St. to Quaker Ln.
  • Seminary Road from Quaker Lane to Van Dorn St.
  • Van Dorn St. from Seminary Rd. to Braddock Rd.
  • Braddock Road from Van Dorn St. to King St.
  • King St. from Braddock Rd. and Quaker Lane to Russell Rd.

The roads will not be entirely blocked from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., as earlier reports indicated, though the temporary closures will compound with heavy vehicle and foot traffic to cause “a huge number of inconveniences to the general public during the day,” said Jennifer Harris, spokeswoman for the City of Alexandria.

The city would like to broadcast exact closure times, she said, but the fluid nature of the ceremonies limits predictability.

Joshua Weissman was killed in the line of duty last week. (Courtesy photo)

Alexandria City Public Schools will dismiss classes early to mitigate traffic, a district spokesperson announced earlier today.

A visitation is scheduled from 5 p.m. to midnight at Everly Wheatley Funeral Home Wednesday. On Thursday, the 33-year-old Bristow resident will be buried with full honors and a fly-over.

City officials urge attendees to carpool and use public transportation as they expect large crowds at the funeral and internment.

Alexandria firefighters and paramedics will be off-duty from Wednesday at about 7 p.m. until Friday at noon to mourn Weissman, said AFD spokesman Bob Rodriguez. The shutdown will be “unnoticeable to the general public,” Rodriguez said, because the AFD shares responsibility with Arlington and Fairfax counties as part of a regional agreement. Rodriguez said emergency 9-11 service will not be affected.

City officials urge residents to visit this website to get updated information on the two-day event, including where to send donations.

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