Up to 400 people were also stranded in a trailer park when flames burned to the edge of the only road out, officials said.
"Everybody is hunkered down here. They're fighting the fire
around us. It's across the street from us," said Charles Van Brunt, a ranger at the entrance to Silent Valley Club.
The residents were in no immediate danger, he said.
Authorities asked people in the trailer park to stay put to
leave the roads clear for firefighters.
The Forest Service crew was trying to protect a house as hot
desert winds of 40 kph or more drove flames through the hills northwest of Palm Springs and forced hundreds of people from their homes.
One other firefighter in the burned-out fire engine was
critically injured, said a US Forest Service spokesman.
"The engine was in the area, and with the wind conditions like they were, the fire just overtakes and burns the entire engine," Boss said. "They were trapped within the engine."
Three firefighters died at the scene and two were hospitalised in critical condition. One of those two died several hours later.
The fire began in an area where access is difficult, near the town of Cabazon, and spread rapidly, devouring more than 1,600 hectares, said firefighter spokeswoman.
This year has seen the most areas burned in the United States since authorities began keeping statistics in 1960.
More than 38,000 square kilometres have been consumed since January 1.