The fast-moving wildfire that killed 19 firefighters here Sunday is now more than quadruple in size, as crews battle triple-digit heat and erratic winds in an effort to contain the blaze.
Eratic winds and dry grasses fed the blaze as it tore through the communities of Yarnell and Glen Isla, about 85 miles northwest of Phoenix. An estimated 200 homes and many businesses had been destroyed as the lightning-sparked fire spread to nearly 8,400 acres from 2,000 acres overnight.
Eighteen of the 19 dead were part of the elite Granite Mountain Hotshots of Prescott in the worst wildland firefighter tragedy in the U.S. since 25 were killed in 1933's Griffith Park Fire in Los Angeles. It's also the worst firefighter death toll since 9/11, when 343 members of the New York Fire Department were killed.
The lone survivor escaped because he was moving the crew's truck when the fire engulfed the rest of the crew. Southwest incident team leader Clay Templin says the crew and commanders were following safety protocols, but it appears the fire's erratic nature simply overwhelmed them. Roy Hall, incident commander at the Arizona Division of Forestry, said the deaths are under investigation.
Read more http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/07/01/arizona-firefighters-disaster/2478537/
Eratic winds and dry grasses fed the blaze as it tore through the communities of Yarnell and Glen Isla, about 85 miles northwest of Phoenix. An estimated 200 homes and many businesses had been destroyed as the lightning-sparked fire spread to nearly 8,400 acres from 2,000 acres overnight.
Eighteen of the 19 dead were part of the elite Granite Mountain Hotshots of Prescott in the worst wildland firefighter tragedy in the U.S. since 25 were killed in 1933's Griffith Park Fire in Los Angeles. It's also the worst firefighter death toll since 9/11, when 343 members of the New York Fire Department were killed.
The lone survivor escaped because he was moving the crew's truck when the fire engulfed the rest of the crew. Southwest incident team leader Clay Templin says the crew and commanders were following safety protocols, but it appears the fire's erratic nature simply overwhelmed them. Roy Hall, incident commander at the Arizona Division of Forestry, said the deaths are under investigation.
Read more http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/07/01/arizona-firefighters-disaster/2478537/