A woman was found dead and five people were injured after a flash flood in the Grand Canyon this week, the National Park Service said on Friday, as monsoon rains left parts of Arizona awash in muddy, fast-moving and potentially dangerous water. As parts of the West prepare for the fourth major heat wave of the summer, monsoon season in the Southwest has also brought heavy rain to New Mexico and Arizona, with an unusually intense downpour propelling a torrent of water through part of the Grand Canyon, washing away a camp where about 30 people on a rafting trip were spending the night. Park officials started a search after receiving a report of two people missing and “multiple parties injured.” Early Thursday, search and rescue workers found five people, one of whom was in critical condition, the park service said. Two more were later found, one uninjured and one dead. The park service said the person who died was Rebecca Copeland, 29, of Ann Arbor, Mich.Kaitlyn Thomas, a park service spokeswoman for the National Park Service, said the flood overtook the campsite from the sides of the canyon, an uncommon occurrence.

Source: New York Times July 16, 2021 20:03 UTC