Arizona Forestry spokesman says 19 firefighters die battling fast-moving wildfire

By artappraiser on Mon, 07/01/2013 - 2:20am |

Associated Press, June 30, 2013

YARNELL, Ariz. — Gusty, hot winds blew an Arizona blaze out of control Sunday in a forest northwest of Phoenix, overtaking and killing 19 members of an elite fire crew in the deadliest wildfire involving firefighters in the U.S. for at least 30 years.

The “hotshot” firefighters were forced to deploy their emergency fire shelters — tent-like structures meant to shield firefighters from flames and heat — when they were caught near the central Arizona town of Yarnell [....]

The fire started after a lightning strike on Friday and spread to 2,000 acres on Sunday amid triple-digit temperatures, low humidity and windy conditions [....]

URL:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/fast-moving-wildfire-leads-to-more-evacuations-in-central-arizona/2013/06/30/255d5ad2-e1e4-11e2-8657-fdff0c195a79_story.html?hpid=z1