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Memorial park for Granite Mountain hotshots to open Wednesday

Posted at 11:31 AM, Nov 27, 2016
and last updated 2016-11-27 13:31:30-05

The long-awaited memorial for the 19 Granite Mountain Hotshots who perished in a wildfire three years ago is slated to open.

The Granite Mountain Hotshots Memorial State Park will open to the public on Nov. 30. It's located two miles south of Yarnell on State Route 89.

The memorial has been years in the making and includes a trail that leads to the area where the firefighters died.

Nineteen members of the elite firefighting team were killed battling one of the state's most devastating wildfires. Winds shifted and trapped them in a brush-choked canyon.

The flames not only trapped the firefighters but destroyed 127 homes in the Yarnell area.