Remnants of stone footbridge pylons stand along Bright Angel Creek after the August 29 flash flood destroyed the crossing. Photo: NPS / J. Thompson.
One person is dead and approximately 15 people may be missing or unaccounted for after a flash flood tore down Bright Angel Canyon and through the Phantom Ranch area at the bottom of the Grand Canyon on Saturday afternoon, the National Park Service said.
The park is asking anyone who knows of hikers or backpackers who were in the inner canyon along the Bright Angel Creek corridor on August 29, or anyone who held a campground reservation there, to call the NPS Investigative Services Branch tip line at 888-653-0009. The corridor covers the North Kaibab Trail from the trailhead down to Phantom Ranch, Bright Angel Campground, and the stretch known as the Box north of the ranch. Tips can be anonymous, and the park asked in the release for whatever detail a caller has: a name, travel plans, group size, clothing or pack description, or when the person was last known to be in the area.
The body of a 46-year-old man was recovered Sunday evening near Crystal Rapids on the Colorado River, the Associated Press reported, citing the park service, which had not released his name. The park's estimate of the unaccounted stood at approximately 15 as of Sunday, revised from the initial figure of more than 20, and officials have not said whether the recovered man was among them.
By Sunday morning, 62 people had been airlifted out of Phantom Ranch and the lower North Kaibab Trail, with more evacuations scheduled from Cottonwood Campground with help from the Arizona Department of Public Safety, the park said. Evacuees were brought to the Maswik Lodge cafeteria on the South Rim, where the Red Cross coordinated assistance. No injuries were reported among them.
The flood arrived at about 2:30 p.m. and remade the corridor in minutes. Nearly all of the footbridges over Bright Angel Creek were destroyed, cutting off any way across the creek for hikers caught on the wrong side. Phantom Ranch, its canteen and cabins, Bright Angel Campground, and the full length of the North Kaibab Trail are closed until further notice, along with the Black Bridge and Silver Bridge over the Colorado. The river itself is closed to traffic through the area, and rangers are contacting river trips already in the canyon with trip-specific guidance.
Beyond the corridor, the flood pushed boulders and metal debris into the Colorado, widened the creek bed, and extended an existing rapid or carved a new one, AP reported. It also damaged the Transcanyon Waterline, the single potable water line that supplies the park's roughly 6 million annual visitors and about 1,600 year-round residents. The park declared Stage 4 water restrictions and closed overnight hotel accommodations beginning August 31.
"Where are they going to get the money?" Jack Schmidt, director of the Center for Colorado River Studies, said of the rebuilding ahead.
More thunderstorms and heavy rain remain possible in the coming days, the park said, with a risk of further flooding. The park is posting updates to the Grand Canyon news release page and its current conditions page.
Photos
The August 29 storm system crosses the canyon, seen from El Tovar on the South Rim. The park said its rainfall fed the flash flooding in Bright Angel Canyon. Photo: NPS / J. Baird.
The inner gorge from the Tonto Trail in an undated park photo, with the Phantom Ranch area in the drainage below. Photo: Grand Canyon National Park.
How we reported this
This article draws on the following sources, accessed August 31, 2026:
- Public Assistance Requested to Account for Individuals Following Grand Canyon Flash Flood, National Park Service, August 30, 2026, updated in place. The request for information, the tip line, and the current count of approximately 15.
- Significant Flash Flooding Closes Phantom Ranch and North Kaibab Trail, National Park Service, August 30, 2026. Flood timing, evacuation numbers, the closure list, and infrastructure damage.
- Grand Canyon National Park to Close Overnight Hotel Accommodations Beginning August 31, National Park Service, August 29, 2026. The Transcanyon Waterline damage and Stage 4 water restrictions.
- Grand Canyon flooding knocks out water pipeline serving tourists at the national park, officials say, Associated Press (Jamie Stengle and Felicia Fonseca), August 30 to 31, 2026, syndicated at Local10. The body recovery near Crystal Rapids, the pipeline's service figures, the river changes, and the Schmidt quote.