CW: Sepsis, Natural Disasters, & Death
The last thing Anthony Mitchell Sr. told his eldest son was that he was still waiting for an ambulance as the fast-moving Eaton fire engulfed his Altadena home. “He called everybody and said, ‘I’m OK, I’m just waiting to be evacuated,'” his son said of the 5 a.m. phone conversation. “He probably knew nobody was coming, but he wanted to keep everybody at ease.”
The great-grandfather was an amputee who used a wheelchair. His son, Justin Mitchell, had cerebral palsy and needed assistance getting out of bed. They were unable to escape on their own, and relatives reported that firefighters prevented them from entering the evacuation zone.
But, there was no way that he was going to leave his son behind. “He probably could have gotten up and walked away, but he’s not gonna leave my brother,” Mitchell Jr said. “My father would never leave any of his kids. His children were his legacy.”
So the two waited together, hoping to be rescued. Sadly, they ended up becoming two of the first casualties of the massive fires that continue to rage across Los Angeles County. The fires have killed at least 11 people, officials confirmed Friday.
For years, officials have known that disabled people in California are disproportionately likely to die in wildfires. In 2019, the state released a scathing report revealing how disaster management agencies and other first responders were unprepared for the threat.
At the time, it was projected that over four million Californians were disabled, including nearly a quarter million residents under the age of 65. Many people say they feel more vulnerable now. “You feel helpless,” said actress and singer Joci Scott, 26, a wheelchair user from North Hollywood. “Evacuation procedures usually forget people with disabilities. It’s a lot more difficult for us.”
“I can’t just jump out of bed and run real quick — I have to find someone who’s willing to carry me down the stairs,” added Tamara Mena, a wheelchair-user in Northridge who was stuck in her apartment for days when a power outage affected her apartment’s elevators. “Every minute, every second counts.”
Research shows that disabled people are two to four times more likely to die or receive serious injuries during disasters. Additionally, according to United States Census data released in January 2023, the majority of disabled people never return home after a natural disaster.
Shelters are often ill-equipped to meet the needs of disabled people. People like Scott are often afraid that they’ll have to go without medication or other things they need such as urinary catheters. It can be difficult to find supplies in an emergency. Scott requires regular catheterization. Without it, Scott is at risk of developing kidney infections and sepsis.
Sepsis develops when someone’s immune system reacts severely to an infection. It causes severe inflammation throughout the body, which can result in tissue damage, organ failure, and even death. Many types of infections can cause sepsis. Symptoms of sepsis can include hypothermia, rash, tachycardia, and a change in mental status.
Disabled people shouldn’t be forgotten when developing emergency plans. We don’t want to be left behind. The safety and well-being of a community should be a priority. If an emergency plan is developed without disabled people in mind, millions of lives are at risk.
Sources:
Gramm, H. J., et al. ‘Symptoms and Signs for the Early Diagnosis of Sepsis’. Sepsis: An Interdisciplinary Challenge, edited by K. Reinhart and K. Eyrich, Springer Berlin Heidelberg, 1989, pp. 45–57, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-83083-9_6.
Gyawali, Bishal, et al. ‘Sepsis: The Evolution in Definition, Pathophysiology, and Management’. SAGE Open Medicine, vol. 7, Mar. 2019, p. 2050312119835043, https://doi.org/10.1177/2050312119835043.
Izutsu, Takashi, et al. Disability-Inclusive Disaster Risk Reduction and Humanitarian Action: An Urgent Global Imperative. 29 November 2019
Click to access Final-Disability-inclusive-disaster.pdf
Lever, Andrew, and Iain Mackenzie. ‘Sepsis: Definition, Epidemiology, and Diagnosis’. BMJ (Clinical Research Ed.), vol. 335, no. 7625, Oct. 2007, pp. 879–883, https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.39346.495880.AE.
Sharp, Sonja. “Altadena Family Says Disabled Father and Son Were Left to Burn: ‘Nobody Was Coming.’” Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times Communications LLC, 11 Jan. 2025, http://www.latimes.com/california/story/2025-01-10/altadena-fire-deaths-disabled-victims.
Woodruff, Judy, et al. “How Climate Change Risks Impact People with Disabilities.” PBS, Public Broadcasting Service, 9 Nov. 2023, http://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/how-climate-change-risks-disproportionately-impact-people-with-disabilities.