Phoenix, Arizona's famous Camelback Mountain. | EDUCATION IMAGES/UNIVERSAL IMAGES GROUP VIA GETTY IMAGES

They say a 50-year-old woman, a 42-year-old woman and a 24-year-old man were assisted off the Echo Canyon trail Thursday and taken by ambulance to hospitals, but all were listed in stable condition.

The other five were taken off the mountain by a rescue helicopter or a big wheel basket. The Phoenix Fire Department posted video of the scene on Facebook, writing: "Today was one for the books!"

City fire department officials said the hikers were spread out over several mile markers on the trail, which added to the difficulty of the operation.

They said the hikers were mostly from out of state and in Phoenix as part of a women's retreat.

Jasmine Hunter, one of the hikers, told CBS affiliate KPHO-TV they were filming a reality TV show called "Bad Girls Gone God."

"When we get together, we praise, we worship, we do different activities that not only test our physical but our spiritual capabilities as well," Hunter told the station.

Hunter said she was one of the first ones down the mountain and didn't know others in the group were struggling.

"They noticed they weren't coming, the stream slowing down. We couldn't reach anybody on the phone anymore and that's when we were like, we need to activate," Hunter told the station.

Firefighters said the group started their hike at 7 a.m. with each person only carrying a small bottle of water.

"We had no idea going into it that this apparently was one of the hardest trails in Phoenix," Kristin Livingston told KPHO-TV. "I think they just have dehydration and things like that. In the name of Jesus, they're going to be OK!"

Source