How a scenic enclave at the bottom of the Grand Canyon turned into an epicenter of deadly destruction

By Karina Tsui, Holly Yan, CNN

(CNN) — It’s a breathtaking refuge unlike any other: a remote enclave tucked at the bottom of Arizona’s Grand Canyon, nestled between towering cliffs. Suddenly, with little to no warning, those majestic slopes turned into raging waterfalls.

Hikers and campers near Bright Angel Canyon and the Phantom Ranch lodging area started running for their lives Saturday as torrential rainfall funneled down the canyon and idyllic creeks morphed into violent torrents.

At least two people were killed and one person remains unaccounted for after flash flooding washed out footbridges and campgrounds on the canyon floor. Many more were imperiled by muddy water racing through the narrow ravines, sparking frantic rescue missions for dozens.

Even for outdoor enthusiasts, the magnitude of destruction wrought by nature’s fury seemed unfathomable.

“In the beginning, it was a normal thunderstorm,” said Jesse Jaremczak, who works at the top of the canyon on the South Rim. “Then the supercell monster came.”

Christopher Dry, who was hiking with his son on higher ground, recalled seeing a bolt of lightning and rain – followed by “zero visibility” just minutes later.

“The clouds actually (formed) below and rose up out of the canyon quickly,” Dry told CNN.

The inundation came quickly. David Gregory had just started unpacking in Phantom Ranch – the only lodging under the rim of the Grand Canyon – when a park ranger came and told him to prepare for a possible evacuation.

Just 10 minutes later, the ranger frantically returned. Visitors needed to evacuate immediately.

“We realized the creek near camp was black with debris and flowing rapidly,” Gregory said.

“When the rain hit … it just got faster and faster. It was probably moving faster than I think I could run.” Gregory was later rescued by helicopter.

Parth Desai, who was also in the Phantom Ranch area, scrambled into a patch of cacti after his colleague shouted “up, up, up, up” as a 4-foot wall of debris rushed toward them.

“We saw the creek flood, waterfalls coming up out of nowhere, boulders, mud, landslides happening everywhere,” Desai told The Associated Press. His group was also rescued by helicopter.

But others were unable to escape.

2 friends die while on an epic adventure, and one is missing

Three friends, who had long dreamt of exploring the canyon, arrived just one day before the deadly deluge, their families said in a joint statement Tuesday.

John Giusti, 46, Brent Rosenkranz, 42, and Timothy Allen Smith, 53, planned to spend two nights hiking and fishing together near the bottom of the canyon, their families said.

After they reached the canyon’s rim, Giusti and Rosenkranz shared their excitement about the trip on social media.

Giusti, who was a chiropractor, posted photos of his adventure on his office’s Facebook page.

Rosenkranz wrote about tackling his fear of heights.

“Will be hiking over 31 miles next four days with vertical change of over a mile. Carrying a 40 lb backpack. This should be an adventure!” Rosenkranz posted Friday.

“Most of you know don’t handle heights. So I should have lots of funny stories when I get back.”

By Tuesday morning, Giusti’s and Rosenkranz’s families received confirmation that both of their loved ones were killed. The National Park Service publicly confirmed the two hikers’ identities in a statement on Tuesday.

“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,” Giusti’s wife, Janet, said in the families’ joint statement.

Rosenkranz’s wife remembered her husband as a “lifelong martial artist” who made an impact on generations of students.

“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,” Elisha Rosenkranz said in the statement.

As the families’ mourned two of the friends, search efforts to locate Smith continue Tuesday. His wife and three children posted a video on Facebook asking for prayers, and hoping Smith is found soon.

“We couldn’t get through this without God, and we have faith that the rescuers and the people searching today are going to find our loved family member,” Carrie Smith said in the video. The family sat together holding hands as one of Smith’s son’s lead them in a prayer.

Park officials said only one person, whom they did not identify by name, remains missing as of Tuesday. Search efforts have been stymied by bouts of heavy rain, making conditions unsafe for rescuers, and they said monsoon moisture expected Tuesday could further impact operations.

Specialized search teams from the US Border Patrol have joined the search effort Tuesday, the park said.

A drone from the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office will also be used to scan for devices emitting Bluetooth frequencies, officials said.

Floods of ‘destructive force’ blast through the canyon

As the rain pounded the canyon Saturday, park officials received an alert from the National Weather Service warning of flash flooding in the area.

At around 12:23 p.m., the National Park Service relayed the warning through an alert system it established to reach people with satellite devices in the canyon, where there is no cellphone service, said Tim Carter, director of emergency management for Coconino County.

In total, six messages about the flooding were sent through the system on Saturday, Carter said.

A water gauge system installed at Bright Angel Creek alerted park authorities to rising water levels.

But that system went offline as the creek swelled, picking up speed and “destructive force,” Brian Drapeaux, deputy superintendent of Grand Canyon National Park, said. It’s not yet clear why the gauge went offline, he said.

Park authorities rushed to evacuate staff and visitors out of the Bright Angel Creek area, Cottonwood Campground and Phantom Ranch, the below-rim lodging area that is accessible only by foot, mule or rafting the Colorado River.

By 2:45 p.m., park officials started evacuating Phantom Ranch. Within an hour, National Park Service helicopters were deployed to start rescuing people. More than 80 people were safely evacuated, Black said.

‘Miles’ of critical water supply damaged

By Monday night, the entire park was open and accessible to the public. But a crucial pipeline that supplies water to tourists near the South Rim is badly damaged, Drapeaux said.

The water pipeline provides potable water and fire suppression for all facilities on the South Rim, Drapeaux said. That is an area with a large concentration of hiking trails, scenic viewpoints, lodging and visitor services.

The full extent of the damage will be assessed Tuesday. But “just from flyover, without having people on the ground, we anticipate miles of pipeline being destroyed,” Drapeaux said.

“We currently have approximately two weeks of water available in storage,” he said, noting that daily use quantities will depend on the number of visitors and staff on the ground.

In the meantime, water restrictions are in place, including the closure of overnight guest lodging, spigots at campgrounds turned off, and a restriction on all wood and charcoal fires, including campfires.

It’s not clear how much the catastrophe will impact visitors this Labor Day weekend.

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CNN’s Diego Mendoza, Avni Trivedi, Amanda Musa, Maria Aguilar Prieto, Tyler Ory, Mounira Elsamra, Sarah Dewberry, Caroll Alvarado and John Berman contributed to this report.