Grim end to search for woman missing after Colorado River flash flood at Grand Canyon National Park
The body of an Arizona woman who went missing in the Grand Canyon National Park after a flash flood days earlier was recovered Sunday, park rangers said.
The body of Chenoa Nickerson, 33, from the Phoenix suburb of Gilbert, Arizona, was discovered by a group rafting down the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon around 11.30am Sunday, local time, the park said in a statement.
The discovery followed days of desperate searching after Nickerson was swept into Havasu Creek above the Colorado River confluence around 1.30pm Thursday, according to National Park staff. She wasn’t wearing a life jacket.
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Her husband Andrew was among the more than 100 people safely evacuated.
The flood trapped several hikers in the area above and below Beaver Falls, one of a series of usually blue-green waterfalls that draw tourists from around the world to the Havasupai Tribe’s reservation. The area is prone to flooding that turns its iconic waterfalls chocolate brown.
“Chenoa Nickerson is still missing,” Nickerson’s sister, Tamara Morales, said earlier Sunday on social media.
“Attempts to find Chenoa via her Apple watch have been unsuccessful,” Morales added. “Do NOT lose hope. She will be found.”
Park officials said Sunday’s search by air, ground and motorised boats was focused at the confluence of Havasu Creek and the Colorado River.
Chenoa Nickerson stayed overnight at a campground near the village of Supai on the Havasupai reservation, deep in a gorge off the Grand Canyon.
The flood trapped several hikers in the area above and below Beaver Falls, one of a series of usually blue-green waterfalls that draw tourists from around the world to the Havasupai Tribe’s reservation. The area is prone to flooding that turns its iconic waterfalls chocolate brown.
Other hikers made it to the village, about 3.2 kilometres from the campground, where they awaited helicopter rides out.
Governor Katie Hobbs activated the Arizona National Guard, including Blackhawk helicopters, to help evacuate hikers from the village.
Guard officials said an estimated 104 tribal members and tourists near Havasupai Falls have been evacuated since Thursday after floodwaters left them stranded.
The Havasupai Tribe’s reservation is one of the most remote in the continental US, accessible only by foot, mule or helicopter.
Helicopter evacuations began after bridges were washed away and rescuers fanned out amid a series of towering waterfalls.
