Bodies of 4 men in ATV crash off an Arizona cliff recovered

The bodies of four men apparently killed in a fiery crash of an ATV that went over a northern Arizona cliff have been recovered, authorities said Monday.

Coconino County Sheriff’s officials said a 10-acre fire and rugged terrain made it difficult for rescuers to get to the site of Saturday’s crash near Blue Ridge.

The names of the victims were being withheld until relatives can be notified, according to sheriff’s spokesman Jon Paxton.

Authorities said all four men were from the Phoenix metro area and had been on a camping trip in the Payson area.

The U.S. Forest Service reported a fire near a forest road Saturday afternoon shortly after the men were reported missing, Paxton said.

He said authorities found ATV tracks near the road and the group apparently failed to negotiate a turn for an unknown reason and plunged 400 feet (122 meters) down a cliff.

Photos from the accident scene showed the charred remains of the ATV at the bottom of the cliff. Paxton said the crash likely started the small fire.