this elite team of firefighters. the yarnell hill fire began moving at a ferocious pace on sunday. suddenly changing direction claiming the most firefighter lives since 9/11 trapping 19 firefighters with no way out. we re devastated. we just lost 19 of some of finest people you ll ever meet. right now we re in crisis. reporter: the firefighters were part of the prescott fire department hot shot crew getting their name because they worked in the hottest most dangerous parts of the world fire, confronting wildfires up close and setting up barriers to stop the spread.fire, confronting wildfires up close and setting up barriers to stop the spread. they will go out there with 40, 50 pounds of equipment, walk five miles, sleep out there. reporter: the crew was tasked with digging a fire line and skra creating an escape route. like many other fire departments across the state, the prescott team jumpged in ed into help fi
that was art morrison from the arizona state forestry division there. and you can see he is very emotional. he is on the phone with me. he said he became a firefighter in the 1960s and has never seen anything like this. sadly, as we are on the air tonight here at 11:41 eastern time, i m reporting to you that 19 firefighters have died in a huge wildfire in arizona. it s in yarnell, arizona. and these are all members of the prescott fire department. and you heard them, you heard the gentleman say there that this was a member of a hotshot team. members of a hotshot team where they go out, it s like an advance team and they go and try to set up fire lines and fight the fire back. and sadly, 19, all 19 of them died. they believe they went out one short. he is hoping. they usually go out with 20 members. he is hope thanksgiving only
tell that you it hyou that it h perfect storm for this to happen. not only are these guys a family, but the entire prescott fire department is a family. these guys are no different than our brothers and sisters that ride on the trucks, they have a specialty job that they do just like everybody else does in the fire department. and it s very difficult for us at this point. the firefighters in arizona are looking for some relief this week. but the deadly heat is expected to continue. and in other parts of the west also suffering from triple digit temperatures, 115 degree heat blamed for the death 6 of elderly man in las vegas found inside his house that didn t have any air conditioning. and record breaking complains in california forced at least six runners to be hospitalized there. and maria melina joins us with the latest conditions. so much heat especially in
evacuation notice and we had no time. we got the dogs. we got the wife. and it s gone. reporter: officials believe lightning may have sparked the fire. the area has been experiencing severe drought conditions. as the fire moves, positions have to move, as well. to on give you you some perspective on just how terrible this loss is, this wildfire is the deadliest arizona has ever seen. wiping out more than 20% of the prescott fire department s man you power. right now i want to bring in arizona house speaker andy tobin. he joins us on the phone. thank you for coming to us during such a difficult time. these aren t just statistics to you obviously. these are men. and people fighting for property and for lives there.
19 firefighters have been killed battling a wildfire in central arizona that. fire burning in the small community of yarnell 35 miles southwest of prescott. according to the prescott fire department, the 19 firefighters who were killed were part of the prescott granite mountain hot shots and they were battling the yarnell yarnell hill fire when they were reportedly involved as in a serious incident. the fire that burn nearly 2,000 acres so far was likely caused by a lightning strike on saturday night. it s been getting dangerously close to homes. hundreds of people have been evacuated. again, word from the prescott fire department in arizona that 19 firefighters have been killed battling a massive wildfire near yarnell, arizona. stay with fox news for the latest on this developing story. i m marian rafferty. now back to huckabee. on thursday, the senate