Grand Canyon flash flooding deaths spur questions over whether warnings could have come sooner

September 1, 2026 / 10:37 AM EDT / CBS News

A search and rescue operation is expected to continue Tuesday to find the last person missing in flash flooding that hit parts of the Grand Canyon over the weekend — as questions arise about whether people could have been warned sooner.

At least two people died in the major flash floods. One was identified by his family as Dr. John Giusti, a 46-year-old chiropractor from Granbury, Texas. His friend, Brent Rosenkranz, 42, was also killed, according to a family spokesperson. A third friend, Timothy Allen Smith, 53, was still missing as of Monday night, his family said.

Officials said at a press conference Monday night that an alert system had been installed in Bright Angel Creek, where the weekend's catastrophic flash flooding occurred. The system was installed in the aftermath of a wildfire last year that left the area particularly susceptible to this type of disaster by making the mountainsides essentially water repellent.

The system is made up of a series of river gauges, designed to send out an alert when water levels in the creek reach a certain point. Brian Drapeaux, acting superintendent of Grand Canyon National Park, said…

Original source: https://www.cbsnews.com/entertainment/