The body of a 33-year-old woman who went missing at the Grand Canyon was recovered by park rangers three days after she was swept away in a flash flood. Chenoa Nickerson was pulled into the Colorado River on Aug. 22 as flood waters rose in Havasu Creek, a popular Grand Canyon destination located within the Havasupai Tribe reservation.
The flash flood hit just before 1:30 p.m., trapping several hikers in the area and prompting a mass evacuation of over 100 tourists and tribal members.
Nickerson and her husband, both visitors from Gilbert, Ariz., were swept into Havasu Creek, about 800 metres from where the creek feeds into the Colorado River. Nickerson’s husband was rescued by a group of rafters, according to KPNX of Phoenix , but Nickerson herself was nowhere to be found.
Rangers at the Grand Canyon National Park searched for Nickerson for days with no sign of the missing 33-year-old. The National Park Service appealed to the public for help locating Nickerson, who they said was not wearing a life jacket when she was swept away. On Sunday, three days after the flood, a group of people on a boat tour of the Colorado River discovered a body and alerted officials.
Nickerson’s remains were recovered near river mile 176 of the Colorado River, park officials said in a press release . The Havasu Creek meets the Colorado River at mile 157, meaning that she was pulled more than 30 km downstream. A statement from Nickerson’s family thanked search-and-rescuers for their efforts an.