Hiker swept away in Grand Canyon National Park during flash flood
Heavy rains flooded Havasu Creek Thursday afternoon, stranding several hikers above and below Beaver Falls, according to National Park Service officials. One hiker was pulled into the raging creek and remains missing.
Flash flooding strands hikers in northern Arizona
Flash flooding in Havasupai Village in northern Arizona on Thursday destroyed bridges and walkways, leaving about 200 hikers stranded.
GRAND CANYON NATIONAL PARK, Ariz. — A search is under way for a hiker who was swept away during a flash flood inside Arizona's Grand Canyon National Park on Thursday that left hundreds of other hikers stranded.
Heavy rains flooded Havasu Creek Thursday afternoon, stranding around 200 hikers, including several above and below Beaver Falls, according to National Park Service officials.
Rescuers arrived via helicopter to assist but learned a 33-year-old woman had been swept into the raging Havasu Creek about a half mile above the Colorado River confluence and was still missing.
The woman, identified as Chenoa Nickerson, is described as 5 feet 8 inches tall, weighing 190 pounds with brown hair and blue eyes, NPS officials said. She was wearing a black tank top, black shorts and blue hiking boots, but not wearing a life jacket, officials said. Anyone with information on Nickerson's location is asked to call the NPS ISB Tip Line at (888) 653-0009.
‘It was very scary’
Rochelle Tilousi, who lives near Havasu Creek, told FOX 10 Phoenix Thursday started out as a beautiful day with clear skies, but clouds rolled in by 11 a.m., and an hour later, heavy rain came down for at least 30 minutes.
"It was very scary," said Tilousi. "That's the second-biggest flood I've ever experienced in my life."
Officials with the National Weather Service said the area received between 1-2 inches of rain within 60-90 minutes.
Heavy rains trigger flash flooding in Grand Canyon National Park on Aug. 22, 2024.
(Carley Vanderhorst Johnson/Facebook / FOX Weather)
Many tourists lost all of their belongings as they rushed to higher ground during the severe thunderstorm, FOX 10 reported.
"We had to cross a lot of water crossings," Mimbs told FOX 10. "A lot of the bridges washed out, but we made it back. The tribe let us stay inside one of their buildings, last one with about 200 people."
Phoenix's FOX 10 reported over 100 people needed a helicopter ride out of the west end of the Grand Canyon and the National Guard was sent in to help.
Meanwhile, the Havasupai Tribal Council has asked people to stay away from Supai this weekend "due to excessive flooding."
Paddleboarder dies at Canyon Lake during storms
The monsoon storms turned deadly in Canyon Lake on Thursday evening. Witnesses said a man paddleboarding on the Main Bay was knocked off his board during stormy weather. He was last seen trying to swim to shore, but never made it, according to Sgt. Calbert Gillett with the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office.
A dive team found the 26-year-old's body Friday morning in about 75 feet of water.