Metallica bassist honored in California community

OAKLAND, Calif. — A heavy metal hero is being celebrated in the San Francisco Bay Area community where he grew up.

Supervisors in Alameda County named Feb. 10 Cliff Burton Day, in honor of the late bassist of Metallica who was born in Castro Valley south of Oakland.

Burton was 24 when he was killed in a bus accident in 1986. He would’ve turned 56 on Saturday.

The designation came after Metallica fan Robert Souza started an online petition to get officials to recognize Burton. It got 5,600 signatures.

Burton’s 93-year-old father, Ray, told supervisors his son would’ve had a huge smile on his face about receiving the proclamation.

Burton played on Metallica’s first three albums. He was inducted posthumously into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with Metallica in 2009.