At least 1 dead, 20 possible missing after Grand Canyon flash flooding

At least one person is dead and many more may be missing tonight after flash flooding at the Grand Canyon and authorities are asking for help getting information on hikers who are in the bright Angel Creek corridor when the storms hit on Saturday. Jacob Luthi joins us with the details tonight. Jacob. Yeah. Good evening, Brian. The National Park Service says a 46 year old man was recovered near Crystal Rapids along the Colorado River. The Coconino County Medical examiner's office was on scene to investigate. Now this comes after flash floods ripped through the Grand Canyon, forcing dozens to be airlifted out of the park. One of those evacuated tells me he was stunned by how quickly the conditions went from calm to chaos changed very quickly from a kind of a peaceful setting to maybe get your stuff together to, hey, we gotta go. We don't have time. David Gregory expected to spend the night at Phantom Ranch after a day of hiking the Grand Canyon until the weather turned and everything changed. That little cell came in. It rained on us for 30 minutes, went away and all of a sudden we were the creek was out of control and we had to get out of there quickly. David and around 30 others were ushered across a bridge to higher ground away from the ranch just minutes before floodwater swept through the area. There's nothing left of that bridge. There's just like this stone stone part on one side and the stone part on the other side. David was one of dozens airlifted out of the park by the National Park Service and Arizona Department of Public Safety. He says his group was flown out four people at a time to the Grand Canyon Airport flash flooding hit around 2 30 saturday afternoon, leaving a path of destruction through Bright Angel Canyon. The National Park Service says floodwaters washed out trails and destroyed nearly every foot bridge spanning Bright Angel Creek. Now the National Park Service is searching for potentially missing hikers from these areas and are asking for the public's help in identifying them. We saw like all the construction equipment like cabins and ice chests and you know, all kinds of things floating in the Colorado River, you know, man made stuff in the river. In addition to all the logs and the debris, David considers himself an avid hiker and has visited the Grand Canyon multiple times. But he says it was the quick action and knowledge of park rangers that helped get him and others to safety. A lot of times it could be raining 5-10 miles away and you don't even realize. I'm very grateful for the park service and for, you know, the park ranger kind of, you know, creating a sense of urgency as the National Park Service continues their search. David says his focus is on those who might be missing. Let's pray for all the people that are still missing. Now, the flooding also caused damage to the Trans Canyon Waterline and the National Park Service says the park is under stage four water restrictions and they're asking and residents to conserve water. They say rainfall is possible tonight into tomorrow, which could result in additional flash flooding and debris flows. Jacob Luthi Fox 10 News.