A fourth firefighter has died from burns he sustained last month when a fast-moving wildfire near the Colorado-Utah border decided that three colleagues wasn't enough. Nathan Matthews, 43, from Lincoln, Nebraska, died on Friday, the US interior department announced with all the joy of a wet blanket.

"This is another heartbreaking loss for our wildland fire family," said Brian Fennessy, chief of the US wildland fire service, in what is becoming a tragically recurring press release.

Matthews was part of a helitack crew - fancy speak for firefighters who get dropped by helicopter into remote areas to tackle new, rapidly expanding fires - that got caught in a "burnover" on 27 June near Mesa County, Colorado. For those not fluent in wildfire jargon, a burnover is when a fire spreads and closes off all escape routes, essentially turning the area into a very warm trap.

The crew deployed tent-like emergency shelters to shield themselves from the flames, which worked about as well as you'd expect. Three firefighters - Emily Barker, 38; Nick Hutcherson, 27; and Sydney Watson, 26 - died at the scene. Matthews and another colleague were evacuated for medical treatment. No word yet on the other firefighter's condition, because this story clearly needs more cliffhangers.

Watson, Hutcherson, and Barker were honored at a memorial service earlier this month. Matthews' memorial arrangements are still TBD, because apparently tragedy doesn't come with a schedule.

The western US is currently dealing with dozens of large fires, thanks to months of dry weather, a record lack of snow, hot spells, and erratic winds - nature's way of saying "you're welcome." Firefighters were bracing on Saturday for potentially worse fires in Oregon, where a blaze near Bend is making everyone nervous because it's uncomfortably close to people.