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FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. — Two medical helicopters collided on Sunday as one was taking off and the other landing, killing at least six people and critically injuring three others, officials said.

Three of those killed were aboard one of the helicopters, officials said, and the other three dead and one of the injured people were aboard the second aircraft.

The crash occurred near a mesa just east of Flagstaff Medical Center. Debris was spread over a 500-yard area, and one of the helicopters exploded on the ground, setting off a wildfire that burned 10 acres before firefighters brought it under control.

Two paramedics with Guardian Medical Service who rushed to the crash scene were knocked to the ground by the explosion and received slight injuries, officials said at a news conference. They were treated at the hospital and released, officials said.

The names of the dead and injured were not released.

Both of the helicopters were Bell 407 models, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. Officials at the news conference, convened hours after the crash, did not reveal who owned the aircraft, but The Associated Press reported that one was operated by Air Methods of Englewood, Colo., and the other by Classic Helicopters of Woods Cross, Utah.

Matt Stein, a spokesman for Classic Helicopters, told The A.P. that his company’s crew was landing at the hospital carrying a patient from the Grand Canyon’s South Rim. Mr. Stein said the helicopter’s pilot, paramedic and patient all were killed. A flight nurse was in critical condition at Flagstaff Medical Center. He said the pilot had more than 10,000 hours of flight time.

On Friday, The A.P. reported, three men in a medical helicopter were injured when it crashed as it was picking up a patient near Ash Fork, about 50 miles west of Flagstaff.

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PRESCOTT, Ariz. (AP) - Trees killed by a beetle epidemic are helping fuel a wildfire north of Phoenix.

The 400-acre blaze is burning just a half-mile away from a remote mountain community, prompting voluntary evacuations.

A shift in winds is pushing the flames away from homes. Still, the risk remains high because the dead trees are extremely explosive when they burn.

It's unclear how many people were forced out by the flames, although the Red Cross says it has helped about 40 evacuees.

Authorities say the blaze began Saturday night after a lost hiker set a flare for search and rescue crews.

Firefighters are battling blazes elsewhere in the state. Just southwest of Phoenix, crews are holding a blaze in check along the Gila (HEE'-luh) River bed. In southern Arizona, the 8,000-acre Distillery fire is now about 80% contained.

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A signal fire started by a lost hiker Saturday night had erupted into a several hundred acre wildfire about a mile from the Crown King community north of the Valley, Yavapai County Sheriff's Office officials said.

It had grown to more than 500 acres and forced the evacuation of the remote mountain town, but winds shifted and all but one structure was spared.

It was sparked Saturday, when five hikers got lost and one of them left the group and started a signal fire to get attention, Yavapai County Sheriff's Office Spokesman Steve Skurja said.

The sheriff's office began a search and rescue effort and saw the fire in the distance but because of rough terrain decided to wait until morning. Winds the next morning spread the fire, Skurja.

Hot shot crews were working the blaze along with three helicopters are dumping water from nearby lakes and small planes. Larger planes that dump slurry are too large to get into the narrow canyons in the area, Skurja said.

Most of the residents in Crown King were evacuated but about 15 homes chose not to leave and were not forced by the sheriff's office, Skurja said.

Barbara Woodward described the area of Crown King on Sunday afternoon "like a war zone" as residents and vacationers in the remote mountain community north of the Valley were evacuated because of a human-caused forest fire.

Woodward, a full-time resident and owner of Bradshaw Mountain Guest Ranch, headed with her husband, Dan, her two cats and dog toward Phoenix to their townhouse for refuge.

"You can just smell the smoke," she said as she drove toward the city. "You basically can't see anything . . . I have a strong feeling that it's very much threatening homes. They said it was imminent that we evacuate."

Woodward is one of about 100 full-time residents who were voluntary evacuated ahead of a fire that has so far burned 50 acres.

About 6 a.m. Sunday, the Woodwards were woken by the commotion of forest service, sheriff's jeeps, helicopters and airplanes.

"I've never been evacuated before. It's pretty scary. This is our livelihood," Woodward who has lived in Crown King since 1973, said. "This is the best place in the world."

The Woodwards left without much, except some papers, checks, unpaid bills, jewelry and a change of clothes. They placed a white cloth on their gate to let firefighters know they had evacuated.

About noon Sunday, officials began evacuating residents of the Horsethief Basin and Crown King communities along with campers from two nearby campsites, Prescott National Forest Public Affairs spokeswoman Debbie Maneely said.

The blaze started about 11:15 p.m. Saturday, and is located about three miles south of Crown King, northeast of Lane Mountain, officials said.

Twelve families have checked into Mayer High School where eight American Red Cross volunteers are providing evacuees shelter, water and food, said Tracey Kiest, a Red Cross spokeswoman.

Kiest said none of the families expect to stay at the shelter overnight.

The shelter is located in Mayer, Ariz., near Highway 69 about 15 miles from Interstate 17. A nurse with the Red Cross is also on call in case any evacuees need medical supplies.

Many of the area residents have summer homes or weekend homes.

"It's a really remote area. There is only one road in and one road out," Maneely said.

The densely-forested area with Chaparral and Ponderosa pines and a lot of dead fuel makes the blaze a challenge to fight, Maneely said.

The blaze was moving north. Fire crews had used aircraft to battle the blaze but more crews and engines are on the way to start containment lines, Maneely said.

The Crown King area typically has a blaze each year but often they are started by lightning, Maneely said. She said they have done some prescribed burns in preparation but unfortunately not in the affected area.

According to the town's Web site, there have been five major blazes since 1904, when the General Store was established and the railroad was finished. The town's church, which was built in 1917, burned and the store and Saloon were barely saved. In 1972, the Battle Flat fire destroyed more than 28,000 acres. That was followed with two more fires in 1988 and 2003.

About 120 people were evacuated from the town of about 400 scattered homes and summer cabins, Maneely said. The Red Cross set up an evacuation center, but said only one family didn't have a place to stay and needed their help finding shelter.

Five hand crews and five fire engines were working through the night to protect structures, and 10 more engines, four crews and a specialized fire management team were expected to arrive by daylight, Maneely said.

She had no details on the structure that was lost.

Meanwhile, a large brush fire on farmland on the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian community was contained quickly, officials said.

Firefighters allowed the blaze to burn out Saturday on farmland near Horne Road and Oak Street since no structures were threatened, Mesa fire Captain John Jayne said Sunday. The fire, which created a large plume of smoke, started about 10 a.m. and was contained within a few hours, Jayne said

The Ethan Fire in the Southwest Valley also continued to burn, as of 3p.m. Sunday. David Martin, a fire-information officer, said the firefighters are focusing on the southeast end of the fire, clearing out debris and vegetation. About 5,400acres are still burning. About 35percent of the blaze has been contained, but the growth potential is high, fire officials said.

The cost of fire damage is nearing $260,000.

There are nine active fires in Arizona, according to the incident-management situation report from the National Interagency Coordination Center, as of 8 a.m. Sunday.

To sum it all up: Helicopter crash near the top of the pyramid in Flagstaff Arizona. Fires then start in PRESCOTT Arizona, SIGNAL FIRE starts CROWN KING Arizona. So, is this a SIGNAL of impending doom for our beloved KING? You know the one whose grandfather was named PRESCOTT!