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Man who lost father, brother in the Eaton Fire wonders if they could've been saved: "I'm the only one left"

Last Tuesday, Jordan Mitchell lived out his worst nightmare after he was hospitalized, leaving his father and brother without a caretaker for the day. 

Jordan's father, Anthony, used a wheelchair to move around after his leg was amputated a year ago. Mitchell described his father as a funny yet stubborn man. His brother Justin suffered from cerebral palsy but remained joyful throughout his entire life. 

"Best way to describe my dad was funny, stubborn, but he loved us immensely," Mitchell said. "He would've done anything for us ... My brother Justin, the happiest boy you ever met in your life."

Jordan said his brother loved books and barbecues, especially Arthur, The Berenstain Bears and Little Critter. Jordan says he never left his family alone without a caretaker. But last Tuesday he was sick in the hospital when the flames started, leaving Justin and their father on their own as the Eaton Fire grew closer. 

"My worst nightmare [was] I wouldn't be around them and something happened or [they got] hurt," Jordan said. 

Jordan said his dad called 911 right after the fire started asking for help evacuating. However, resources were stretched thin with dozens of evacuations taking place across the Altadena mountain community. The fire storm burned homes miles away from where it started. 

"His last words were help us," Jordan said. "He was trying to get him and my brother out of here."

Jordan's aunt Cassandra Mitchell, lived just a few miles away and said Anthony called her at 6:02 a.m. Wednesday morning. He told her he was stilling waiting for help to arrive. Twenty minutes later, Anthony's home burned with him and his son in it. 

"Dying in a fire is not a pretty way to go and no one deserves that especially not my dad and brother," Jordan said. 

Their deaths are among more than a dozen people reported to have been killed in the Eaton Fire. Crosses marking some of those deaths line a fence along Lake Avenue below the evacuation zone. Jordan said he was angry that no one could save the people he vowed to protect. 

"Out of my immediate family, I'm the only one left," Jordan said. 

Jordan said his other two family members lost their homes in the fire but his aunt Cassandra as taken him in. They are raising money through a crowdfunding campaign to rebuild his home. He hopes to honor his brother Justin my furnishing the home with the children's books he so dearly loved. 

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