Gov. Katie Hobbs activated the Arizona National Guard after a flash flood endangered hikers, tourists and residents at the Grand Canyon. More than 100 people have been evacuated.
The flooding occurred in a remote but popular area of Grand Canyon National Park that’s home to the Havasupai Tribe. The fast-moving floodwaters left many people trapped, prompting emergency action.
“In total, we've evacuated 104 tourists and tribal members out of the Canyon. In addition to the evacuation, there were three supply drop-offs and those consisted of water and food," said Erin Hannigan with the Arizona National Guard.
Hannigan said the Guard utilized a Blackhawk helicopter to fly evacuees to a landing zone, where many were then bused back to their vehicles.
The Havasupai Tribe has asked visitors to stay away from the area until further notice.
Hannigan also said there was no hesitation when they got the call from Gov. Katie Hobbs.
"And without skipping a beat, they said yes, because providing support to our communities is huge. And being able to be there for the Havasupai community, they wouldn't have missed it. So we're very pleased that we were able to provide support and, you know, we'll continue to do that in whatever capacity we can with our communities," she said.
EDITOR'S NOTE: The story has been updated to correct the spelling of Erin Hannigan's name.
