A series of wildfires that began in Arizona on June 28 has thusfar scorched more than 8,374 acres and destroyed more than 200buildings.

The blaze also killed 19 firefighters in what is being calledthe worst loss of life from a wildfire in 80 years.

The largest fire began on Friday near Yarnell, Ariz., about 85northwest of Phoenix. Authorities say that it was caused bylightning. About 50 evacuations have been prompted in Yarnell and aneighboring town, with Sheriff's Office employees goingdoor-to-door to alert residents as 200 firefighters battled theblaze.

The fire killed 19 of the 20 members of the elite PrescottGranite Mountain Hotshots crew, knows for dealing with intense anddifficult blazes. It was the deadliest event for firefighters sinceSept. 11, officials say.

An additional 400 firefighters are being deployed today, alongwith water-and-retardant dropping helicopters and aircraft, tosecure the eastern flank of the blaze.

The fire has also caused the Arizona Department ofTransportation to close off about 15 miles of state Route 89.

Arizona Governor Janice K. Brewer declared a state of emergencyin response to the fire, granting $200,000 to support response andrecovery efforts.

Another fire in Dan Peak was sparked by lightning at 3:30 p.m.on June 29 in the Hualapai Mountains. It is currently burning 200acres of brush, pinion, juniper and pines. Yet another fire wasreported late Sunday evening in the Catalina mountains.

The National Interagency Fire Center calls for a severe wildfireoutlook in July for the Southwest, and wrote on June 25 that“Arizona had a potpourri of drought conditions overall” expectedthrough the end of September.

Temperatures in Yarnell will reach 106 degrees tomorrow, but anactive summer monsoon temperature may temper the heat in someareas.

Munich Re research says there were 38catastrophic wildfires in the U.S. in 2012. The blazescaused an estimated $1.1 billion in economic losses and $595million in insured losses. Arizona lost more than 216,000 acres to1,684 natural fires last year. The National Interagency FireCenter's Predictive Services unit forecasts an abovenormal potential for significant fire activity in the West Coaststates, the Southwest, and portions of Idaho and Montana in 2013.Over 22,000 wildfires destroyed 1.5 million acres from January 1 toJuly 1.

In Colorado last month the Black Forest Fire became the state's most destructive, destroying nearly 500 homes.