Family And Friends Say Farewell To Cousteau

Amid a mountain of flowers, undersea explorer Jacques-Yves Cousteau was buried in a family crypt Thursday in his native village in southwestern France.

Only about 50 relatives and friends were permitted into the cemetery at Saint-Andre-de-Cuzbac, a small town 15 miles northeast of Bordeaux, for the funeral. Cousteau died last week at the age of 87.

A huge cross of red roses from Prince Rainier of Monaco was among the large number of flowers and wreaths that surrounded the coffin made of cherry wood.

Security officials later allowed 1,000 people who had gathered outside the cemetery to pay their final respects to Cousteau after his family and friends had left the gravesite, where his parents are also buried.