Officials in Arizona’s Grand Canyon National Park say a massive, flash-flood is affecting parts of the park, and they are not counting on anyone being found who is missing or unaccounted for.
The “significant flash-flood event” occurred on Saturday in Bright Angel Canyon and the Phantom Ranch area, according to the US National Park Service. Evacuations and emergency response efforts are ongoing as officials seek to ascertain the number of people in flood-affected parts of the country at the time of the flood.
The National Park Service has requested that anyone with information about hikers or backpackers that entered the inner canyon on the Bright Angel Creek corridor on August 29 contact them. Authorities have also called upon those who made a campground reservation in the area to contact the Investigative Services Branch of the park.
Authorities said 62 people were evacuated from Phantom Ranch and the lower portion of the North Kaibab Trail through the morning of August 30. Evacuated to the Maswik Lodge Cafeteria on the South Rim where the American Red Cross was leading the way for help.
As of the last update, no injuries had been reported, authorities said. But the flash flood left property in damage in Bright Angel Canyon which may hamper the rescuer and evacuation efforts.
The Arizona Department of Public Safety is helping with the continuing response by the National Park Service. Authorities are still working to try to determine what areas are the most severely damaged and if anyone is missing that may have been in one of the impacted corridors.
Search and rescue are ongoing, and authorities say anyone with information about possibly missing hikers, backpackers or campers should step up to the plate. The situation is currently being monitored and they are trying to determine what the full effect of the spring flooding could be.