The body of a woman has been discovered three days after she was swept up in a flash flood that required the rescue of more than 100 people near the Grand Canyon in Arizona, officials have said.
The body of Chenoa Nickerson, 33, was discovered by a commercial river boat on the Colorado River about 20 miles (30 km) downstream of where she went missing on Thursday, the US National Park Service said in a statement.
National park service officials said Chenoa Nickerson, 33, was swept into Havasu Creek above the Colorado River confluence at about 1.30pm Thursday without a lifejacket.
Nickerson, from the Phoenix suburb of Gilbert, had been hiking along Havasu Creek about a half mile (800 meters) from where it meets up with the Colorado River when the flash flood struck.
Nickerson’s husband was among the more than 100 people safely evacuated.
Park officials said Sunday’s search by air, ground and motorized boats had been focused at the confluence of Havasu Creek and the Colorado River.
Nickerson had 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 2 miles (3.2km) 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 had been evacuated since Thursday after flood waters 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.
Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report
