CHANDLER, Ariz. — Thursday morning started like most for Dave Hawkins. The journalist based in Kingman was sorting through Associated Press news wires looking for stories to include in his upcoming noon newscast.
He read a story about a traumatic explosion in Chandler. Four people were badly burned. He reported the story on the air.
He never thought one of those four victims would be one of his longtime friends.
“We’re just kind of crestfallen and beside ourselves," Hawkins said.
His friend is Glenn Jordan, an employee at All American Eyeglass Repair at Ray and Rural roads. The business is just two doors down from Platinum Printing, the building where the blast occurred Thursday morning.
Jordan is described by friends as a hard-working, consummate family man with a passion for sports and fitness.
Now, he is in the hospital with more than 40% of his body burned.
“I know him well enough to know that he’s not dwelling on himself. He’s thinking about, 'What about my wife, what about my daughter, what about my family and my business,'" Hawkins said. "He’s that selfless.”
Glenn Jordan is not alone.
The owners of the printing shop, brothers Andrew and Dillon Ryan, are both in the hospital.
Andrew has burns on 30% of his body and is scheduled for surgery on Monday. Dillon may also need surgery for his burns.
“One of them just before the explosion noticed a sharper flash on the ceiling and the explosion happened," said attorney and longtime family friend Tom Ryan.
The fourth victim, Parker Milldebrandt, is an employee at Platinum Printing. The 29-year-old is expecting his first child in a matter of days. He's in a coma and now unable to be by his wife's side during delivery.
“All three of these young men have a lot of procedures and painful physical therapy (ahead of) them," Ryan said.
As Chandler police team up with the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms to investigate the explosion's cause, the four victims start their long roads to recovery.
“Glenn was a very giving person so here’s a chance for people to give back. I think people are ready to step up and step up hard," Dave Hawkins said.
All four victims have GoFundMe pages set up:
Glenn - https://www.gofundme.com/f/fundraiser-for-glenn-jordan?qid=6dc117cbc66380b89de27843a34f5059
Parker - https://www.gofundme.com/f/chandler-explosion-survivor-parker-mildebrandt?utm_campaign=p_cp+share-sheet&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter
Andrew and Dillon - https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-the-ryan-boys-heal?qid=67a9a264edd07a89df143701b4f75f98
Investigators are still working to determine the cause of the explosion.
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