For three friends, an eagerly anticipated dream adventure to the Grand Canyon becomes a nightmare
By Ray Sanchez, Rebekah Riess, CNN
(CNN) — A foreboding sky rises high over a selfie taken by a smiling John Giusti before the jagged, staircase-like ridges of the Grand Canyon on the first day of a dream hiking trip with two buddies.
Standing before the canyon’s sheer cliffs, plunging up to a mile down, his friend, Brent Rosenkranz, 42, also posted vertigo-inducing photos on Facebook about 45 minutes earlier late Friday morning. It was the beginning of a four-day hike over more than 30 miles, and Rosenkranz even quipped about his fear of heights.
“So I should have lots of funny stories when I get back,” he wrote on the post, which included Luke Comb’s song, “Days Like These.”
Giusti, Rosenkranz and Timothy Allen Smith set out to hike to Bright Angel Campground on the banks of a creek of the same name – where they planned to spend two nights while exploring trails near the bottom of the canyon, according to a statement from their families. They were going to do some fishing and then hike to Havasupai Gardens, a campground sitting more than 3,000 feet below the south rim of the canyon.
On Tuesday, Giusti’s and Rosenkranz’s families and the National Park Service confirmed their deaths after torrential rains and a flash flood suddenly roared through the canyon three days earlier. The storm buried trails in torrents of rock and mud, washed out bridges and campgrounds, and sent people running for their lives.
Smith is still missing, his family said Tuesday.
“It is with a broken heart that I share the passing of my husband, Brent Rosenkranz, while on his final adventure, a hike at the Grand Canyon,” his wife, Elisha Rosenkranz, posted on Facebook.
“Thank you for every adventure, every meal, every laugh, and every hug. Most of all, thank you for giving me the love of a lifetime.”
In an emotional Facebook video, Smith’s wife, Carrie, appeared Tuesday with their three children, to confirm “our dad, our husband is one of the one’s still missing.”
“We know that God has a plan,” she said. “We know there are so many people who have been praying… We just want them to know that we couldn’t get through this without God.”
Raging waterfalls amid landslides of mud and rock
Jesse Jaremczak, who works at the top of the canyon on the South Rim, recalled that what at first appeared to be a normal thunderstorm on Saturday quickly morphed into a “supercell monster.” The perilous severe storms merge into lines or clusters that unleash destructive hail, roaring winds and sometimes tornadoes over an extended period.
Christopher Dry was hiking with his son on higher ground when a brilliant bolt of lightning seemed to split the canyon in half, followed by heavy rains that fell as clusters of clouds quickly ascended from the massive gorge, he said.
David Gregory had just started unpacking in the only lodging under the canyon’s rim, Phantom Ranch. A park rangers told him to prepare for a possible evacuation.
Ten minutes later, he said, the evacuation was necessary. A creek near the camp was blackened with debris and flowing rapidly. The rain picked up “faster and faster.”
“It was probably moving faster than I think I can run,” Gregory said.
Parth Desai was also in the Phantom Ranch area. He had to scrambled into a patch of cacti as a 4-foot wall of debris rushed toward him and a friend. The scenic oasis at the bottom of the canyon was transformed as the creek flooded and raging waterfalls sprouted around them amid landslides of mud and rock.
An adventure friends ‘had been eagerly anticipating’
Days earlier, Giusti, 46; Rosenkranz; and Smith, 53, arrived at the Grand Canyon for a “trip they had been eagerly anticipating,” according to the statement from their families. The friends had last spoken with relatives Thursday night, excited about commencing their adventure the next morning. On Saturday, the three men went exploring.
Heavy rains were already pounding the area when park officials received a National Weather Service warning of flash flooding.
At around 12:23 p.m., the National Park Service relayed the warning through an alert system to reach people with satellite devices in an area without cellphone service, said Tim Carter, director of emergency management for Coconino County. In all, six messages about the flooding were transmitted.
At the same time, Bright Angel Creek’s water gauge alerted park officials of rising water levels before the warning system went offline. The creek swelled rapidly, gaining speed and destructive force, said Brian Drapeaux, Grand Canyon National Park deputy superintendent.
Frantic rescue missions by park authorities began evacuating staff and visitors from Bright Angel Creek, Cottonwood Campground and Phantom Ranch, the below-rim lodging area accessible only by foot, mule or rafting the Colorado River.
By 2:45 p.m., park officials were getting people out of Phantom Ranch. Within an hour, National Park Service helicopters joined the effort. More than 80 people were safely evacuated, Black said.
Exploring the Grand Canyon was a longtime dream
On Tuesday, Elisha Rosenkranz, confirmed the death of her husband of 21 years, Brent, of Granbury, Texas. The father of three young sons, Rosenkranz was a martials arts instructor and school owner who dedicated much of his life teaching and mentoring young people, according to his family.
The couple, she said, wanted to build “as many leaders as we can.”
“To every instructor and student who has been part of this journey, you helped us reach our dreams,” she wrote.
The school will continue to hold classes as scheduled, his wife said in a Facebook post.
At church, the family said, Rosenkranz was known affectionately as “The baby whisperer.”
Giusti was “a husband, devoted father of three daughters and chiropractor whose family describes him as a real-life superhero,” according to his family’s statement.
“He poured himself into helping others and brought tremendous energy to everything he loved. He was an avid runner, loved fast cars and was a passionate fan of comic books and their legendary heroes.”
Exploring the Grand Canyon was a longtime dream.
“To the community, he was a gifted healer. To his friends, a powerhouse of life. To his daughters, he was their ultimate hero. To me, he was my whole world,” Janet Giusti said.
On Tuesday morning, park officials informed Smith’s family he was the only person still part of the search effort – which relatives said includes boats, helicopters and personnel on the ground. A scent detection canine team is now part of that search, along with a specialized drone unit being transported to Phantom Ranch.
Smith was a private pilot with NetJets and member of Emmanuel Bible Church in Thayne, Wyoming. He cherished the outdoors, and hiking and camping with family are among the things he loved most, the statement said.
In a Facebook video, one of Smith’s sons cited Matthew 19:26, emphasizing that with God, all things are possible.
“We just ask that you pray for us, for strength, as we continue this journey of not knowing where Tim is,” Carrie Smith said, flanked by her three children.
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CNN’s Karina Tsui, Holly Yan, Taylor Galgano, Diego Mendoza, Avni Trivedi, Amanda Musa, Maria Aguilar Prieto, Tyler Ory, Mounira Elsamra, Sarah Dewberry, Caroll Alvarado and John Berman contributed to this report.
