Deadly flash flood forces Grand Canyon evacuations and water restrictions, in photos
Bright Angel Canyon, middle left, the scene of flash floods, meets with the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon, Monday, Aug. 31, 2026, at Grand Canyon National Park, Ariz.
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Family members have identified a hiker killed in weekend flooding in the Grand Canyon as a Texas chiropractor and said two other men who went on their dream trip remain missing. John Giusti and his friends planned to spend two nights at the bottom of the canyon fishing and exploring. They have not been heard from since Friday, the three families said in a joint statement released Monday. Searchers on the air and ground continue to look for Brent Rosenkranz and Timothy Smith, their families said. More than a dozen people were missing following waves of rain in the Bright Angel Creek area of Grand Canyon National Park. Rescue crews have found at least two bodies.
The sole pipeline that supplies water for millions of Grand Canyon visitors was badly damaged by weekend flash flooding, setting up a tricky repair scenario and upending a yearslong construction project to upgrade the line. The Transcanyon Waterline traverses terrain so rugged that helicopters are often required to make basic repairs. Park officials say roughly 40% of of the 12.5-mile-long line was damaged or destroyed. It has endured dozens of breaks in recent years and was undergoing a more than $200 million repair and replacement project when the floods hit. The rugged terrain makes any effort to fix breaks time-consuming, precarious and costly, so efforts to address the latest damage will be complicated.
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