Arizona Wildfire Claims Lives of Nineteen Firefighters

The Prescott Granite Mountain Hotshot crew of Prescott, Ariz. (Credit: KPHO-TV/CBS-5-AZ.com via AFP/Getty Images)

In one of the country's worst wildfire disasters in the 30 years, 19 firefighters died battling a fast-moving wildfire Sunday in Arizona.

Approximately 200 homes were destroyed in the blaze, which ripped through the communities of Yarnell and Glen Isla, roughly 85 miles northwest of Phoenix, reports USA Today.

"It's a dark day," said Arizona State Forestry Division spokesman Mike Reichling .

According to Reichling, the bodies of the 19 firefighters were discovered in an area that also had 19 fire shelters deployed. Some of the bodies were found inside the shelters, which are tent-like structures intended to shield firefighters from the intense flames and heat. These shelters are meant to be used as a last resort.

"The entire fire department, the entire area, the entire state is being devastated by the magnitude of this incident," said Prescott Fire Chief Dan Fraijo in a news conference. "We just lost 19 of some of the finest people you'll ever meet."

Fraijo said it is still unclear what caused the wildfire.

U.S. Rep. Paul Gosar (R-Ariz) added his thoughts on the tragedy, saying, "My heart weeps for those who lost their lives and were affected by today's Yarnell Hill Fire."

The firefighters were members of an elite "hotshot" crew, who specialize in battling wildfires. The "hotshot" crew would build lines of protection between citizens and the fire by hiking for miles into the wilderness with chainsaws and backpacks filled with heavy gear. The team would remove the brush, trees and anything else that might burn in the direction of homes and cities.

Fraijo called these men "the core of firefighting. They're right there in the middle of the incident."

Further details via USA Today:

Officials at the scene of the blaze said they expect about half of the town's 500 homes to be destroyed by the fire. It has burned more than 2,000 acres and is uncontained, fire officials said.

Reichling said federal firefighting help is on the way and that the number of firefighters on the scene will reach 400.

Wickenburg Community Hospital is expecting to treat about eight firefighters who were among about 22 injured battling the fast-moving, 2,000-acre Yarnell Hill Fire that has burned through have the town, officials said Sunday evening.

The spokeswoman for Wickenburg hospital, Roxie Glover, said there are reports of as many as 22 firefighters being injured. About eight from that group were headed to the Wickenberg facility, some were being air lifted to a Phoenix burn unit and others were being transported to Yavapai Regional Medical Center, Glover said.

The Yarnell Hill Fire ignited at about 5:30 p.m. Friday and moved north and east at a rate of roughly half a mile per hour, said fire officials, who evacuated three subdivisions outside Yarnell while approximately 250 firefighters fought to keep the blaze at bay. Officials ordered further evacuations, prompting the Red Cross to open a shelter at nearby Wickenburg High School, to accommodate the increased number of displaced residents. Meanwhile, officials opened a shelter for livestock and large animals at Hidden Spring Ranch in a part of Peeples Valley that was untouched by the fire, which has burned between 1,300-2,000 acres.

Full story: USA Today