Late Metallica Bassist Honored with 'Cliff Burton Day' in Alameda County

OAKLAND (CBS/AP) -- A heavy metal hero is being celebrated in the 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.

Metallica bassist Cliff Burton (left) performs next to James Hetfield. Burton died in a bus accident in 1986. (Pete Cronin via Getty Images)

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 that 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 posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with Metallica in 2009.