Prateek Tanmay
A firefighting aircraft rests on the tarmac at Grand Junction Regional Airport in Grand Junction, Colo., as the Snyder Fire burns nearby. (Photo: AP) Three firefighters have been killed and two others injured after fast-moving wildfires overran their position along the Colorado-Utah border, in one of the deadliest incidents to strike American wildland fire crews this season, the Associated Press (AP) reported.
The firefighters were overcome by flames on Saturday in Mesa County, Colorado, during what is known as a burnover when a fire spreads rapidly and cuts off all escape routes. They deployed emergency shelters in a last-ditch attempt to survive.
The US Interior Department confirmed the deaths, saying the crew members worked for the US Wildland Fire Service and US Forest Service as part of an interagency response to a cluster of fires that merged to form the Snyder Fire. Their names were withheld pending notification of their families.
Temperatures near the fire reached 93 degrees Fahrenheit on Saturday, with winds gusting to 44 miles per hour, according to the National Weather Service, the AP reported.
Fires Spread Across the Western United States
The deaths came as wildfires burned across the wider American West, fuelled by record-low snowpack, high temperatures, and dangerously low humidity. The largest blaze, the Cottonwood Fire in south-west Utah, grew to more than 146 square miles by Sunday, destroying sections of a ski resort and summer cabins.
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Utah Governor Spencer Cox declared an emergency earlier in the week, banning fireworks ahead of the July Fourth holiday. Colorado Governor Jared Polis followed on Saturday, authorising National Guard deployment to assist firefighting efforts.
Nationally, nearly 4,688 square miles have burned since the start of the year, surpassing the 10-year average, according to the AP.
