Fire crews in Arizona rescue two people off Camelback Mountain

PHOENIX (NBC, KYMA) - As temperatures rise in Arizona, fire crews in Phoenix made two separate rescues off Camelback Mountain over the weekend.

Both rescues happened within a few hours of each other.

It's one of the most popular hiking trails in the valley and on Saturday, firefighters had to save multiple people off it.

"This is the third rescue that these members have been on," said Capt. Todd Keller with the Phoenix Fire Department.

Crews were dispatched to the Echo Canyon trailhead at Camelback Mountain. The first call coming in at 11:30 a.m. of an overheated hiker.

The woman made it only a quarter of the way trail when she started feeling dizzy and couldn't make it down.

Crews had to use what they call the big wheel to get her down. Once there, she refused to be taken to the hospital.

An hour later, another call at the same spot. This time, a man had made it nearly to the top when he suffered a medical emergency and couldn't move. Firefighters made the decision to fly that hiker off the mountain and to the hospital.

At this time, firefighters don't know if these were locals or out of town visitors.

"They need to take the same safety precautions as people that live in Arizona," Capt. Keller expressed.

It's a problem that happens so many times every year.

While there are warning signs at the beginning of the trail to have plenty of water and how strenuous of a hike this is, people still don't come prepared.

"We can't tell you how many times we go on hikers that were wearing improper footwear and they have lower extremity injuries," Keller explained.

Not only at Camelback, but trails all over the valley.

"You have to realize that Piestewa peak, Camelback Mountain, Echo Canyon Trail, these are considered double black diamonds. So these are very steep, very, very difficult trails to hike, and when you have the sun beating down on you for three, four hours, it's going to take a toll," Keller remarked.

Seeing these rescues and firefighters putting their own lives at risk is frustrating to frequent hikers who say people need to have a fully charged cell phone, plenty of water, and even hydrate the night before the hike.

"If you're not from Phoenix, stay off at Camelback," said one hiker.

"We prepare for it," said another hiker.

If not, one hiker said, "You're playing with fire."