Authorities say they have recovered the body of a hiker from Tucson who went missing during a flash flood over the weekend at Zion National Park in Utah.
The search for 29-year-old Jetal Agnihotri began on Friday after high waters tore through the park during a heavy monsoon storm. She was one of several hikers in the park when the storm hit but was the only one reported missing by Friday evening.
Jonathan Shafer with Zion National Park says storms continued during the weekend.
"There were several seasonal monsoon rains that increased the flow of the Virgin River to the peak of more than 1,100 cubic feet per second during the time of the search," he said.
In a press release about the death, the park says rangers were dispatched after receiving an initial report Friday afternoon that multiple hikers had being swept off their feet by a flash flood. Park rangers transported one injured hiker to the hospital, while others were told to wait on higher ground for the water to recede. Authorities began searching for Agnihotri when they received word that she was overdue to return from a hike in a section of the park called the Narrows.
More than 170 responders joined the search through the weekend, including National Park Service staff from the Grand Canyon and Lake Mead.
Shafer says Agnihotri was found by a Zion search and rescue team on Monday. She was recovered from the river near a site called Court of the Patriarchs, about six miles south of the Narrows. He said Agnihotri's family has been notified and is in communication with the park.
