More than 20 hikers are missing after a flash flood ripped through the Grand Canyon, sweeping aside large boulders, destroying bridges over the Colorado River and significantly altering the landscape. The torrent of water widened the creek bed and created a new river rapid.
Search and evacuation efforts
The park service said it was seeking information about more than 20 people who may be missing or unaccounted for after the flood and asked anyone with details about people hiking or camping in the area to get in touch. It said it was working with the Arizona Department of Public Safety to continue evacuations Sunday.
More than 60 people were evacuated from Phantom Ranch, which has a historic canteen and dorms and is a common spot for rafters to get on and off the river.
Witness accounts and weather
Erica Viola said she was at Bright Angel Campground when the rain started Saturday afternoon, and she and about 50 other hikers watched the creek rise and then debris start to flow by, including what looked like a bunkhouse. The group was taken by helicopter to safety, ending her adventure two days early, she said.
Around 2.5cm of rain fell within about 30 minutes in the rocky area where there’s a steep drop in elevation, said National Weather Service meteorologist Justin Johndrow in Flagstaff. “Most of it ran off instantly,” Johndrow said.
Impact and reminder
“This is a reminder of what a dynamic and active landscape Grand Canyon is,” said Jack Schmidt, director of the Center for Colorado River Studies at Utah State University.
