Grand Canyon flash flood kills two, leaves third missing as rescue continues

A search and rescue effort is ongoing to locate a 53-year-old man who has been missing since flash floods swept parts of the Grand Canyon over the weekend. The incident has resulted in two confirmed deaths, identified by family members as Dr. John Giusti, 46, a chiropractor from Texas, and his friend Brent Rosenkranz, 42.

Brian Drapeaux, acting superintendent of Grand Canyon National Park, said an alert system of river gauges installed in Bright Angel Creek after a previous wildfire did register rising water levels on Saturday, but the system subsequently went offline as the flood progressed. "They were working and then they weren't working," Drapeaux said, adding that it was unclear whether debris or another factor disabled the gauges.

The floods prompted the evacuation of 82 visitors, some by helicopter, after heavy rain caused canyon walls to collapse and water to rise rapidly. One hiker described the scene: "Ground around us started flooding up and filling with water coming off of the canyon. All the people down in the canyon, there's just nowhere to go."

The event also damaged the park’s main water pipeline, leaving officials with an estimated two weeks of water supply as the area approaches peak wildfire season. A Department of the Interior spokesperson, Elizabeth Peace, indicated that the agency does not have the weather service on site to comment further.