AUSTIN, Texas — An Austin family is grieving after a deadly house fire on Wednesday. Two people and two dogs died in the fire on South Center Street near South First and Ben White Boulevard.
Arlie and Cecil Siegeler's father bought the house in 1971, where they shaped their memories.
"We grew up there. It's our childhood home," Arlie Siegler said. "It's where we grew up everything. Everybody knows that house. Everybody, all of our friends, our mom used to let everybody come and stay."
Their childhood house is now gone after a fire started on the backside of the home.
"It was too far gone, so I just told everybody to get out and call 911," Arlie Siegeler said. "I just saw when I stepped to the door, I could feel the heat. I didn't see the blazes. I kept telling them to get my dad ... They took too long, to get to the fire department."
Cecil Siegeler's partner, Maggie Romine, also lived in the house and took care of their father, Cecil Fred Siegeler Jr., better known as "Freddy" to loved ones.
"I was sitting in a truck across the street and they came back and told me that they lost Maggie," Arlie Siegeler said. "They came back and told me he had a heart attack on the way to the hospital. He had a pacemaker."
Both brothers are now mourning the loss of a bond that is now broken.
"Major loss for me," Cecil Siegeler said. "Two in one day and the house. It's pretty depressing."
The brothers say everything is gone, but the memories of the man and woman they loved remain.
"We were very, very tied to each other," Cecil Siegeler said. "It was a wonderful house forever."
"But now it's gonna be bad memories," Arlie Siegeler said.
The brothers say they are looking for any kind of support, whether it is temporary shelter or financial help.
The Austin Fire Department estimates a $300,000 loss so far. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.