Three firefighters who were killed battling a fast-growing wildfire in Twisp, Washington, were identified as Tom Zbyszewski, 20, Andrew Zajac, 26, and Richard Wheeler, 31.
The men, all members of an engine crew from Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest in central Washington, died Wednesday after their vehicle crashed and was overtaken by flames. The fire was driven by wind and spread erratically, the U.S. Forest Service said.
"We know that these fires have burned a big hole in our state's heart," Washington Gov. Jay Inslee said earlier Thursday. "These are three big heroes protecting small towns."
Zbyszewski 's father, Rick, a former Forest Service firefighter, called his son, who was a straight-A student, "a special kid."