Grand Canyon flooding near Tusayan forces evacuations, knocks out power
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Major flooding in Tusayan, Grand Canyon
There’s major flooding in Tusayan and the National Park Service says the highway entrance into the Grand Canyon has been closed.
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Flooding at the Grand Canyon’s south rim forced evacuations, power outages and a swift water team response to the area on Tuesday, the Arizona Department of Transportation reported.
“Travel to and from the South Rim of Grand Canyon National Park is not recommended,” the National Park posted on X, the social platform formerly called Twitter, after it closed State Route 64 Tuesday just south of Tusayan due to flooded area.
The gateway town is one of the park’s two entrances (the North Rim and the South Rim).
So far no fatalities have been reported, a National Park dispatcher told USA TODAY on Wednesday morning, and roads in the area were reopening.
The dispatcher said rain started falling Monday and continued through late Tuesday night.
NWS extends flood advisory
The flooding came on the heels 2 to 3 inches of rain falling in the area over a short period Tuesday afternoon, pooling water nearly 3 feet high in the gateway town of Tusayan, Coconino County officials reported.
A flood advisory issued Tuesday by the National Weather Service remained in effect through 10 a.m. Wednesday local time.
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Residents asked to shelter in place
State transportation officials said they initially closed the roadway due to standing water on the road in Tusayan.
Coconino County officials on Tuesday had asked people to shelter in place until waters receded.
The Coconino County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Jon Paxton said more than 100 people were evacuated from hotels and employee housing in the area. Paxton also reported about 70 students from the Grand Canyon Unified School District who had been sheltering on school property were being returned home.
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State Route 64 reopened
As of early Wednesday, the roadway had reopened inside the park and in Tusayan.
“Power outages continue in Tusayan as crews work to clear areas that were damaged (by flooding),” the park wrote.
Arizona’s DOT was reminding people to use caution while driving near high water and in the rain, asking them to slow down, keep their headlights on and never drive across areas where water is visiable on the road.
Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at nalund@usatoday.com and follow her on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter @nataliealund.