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Update: Search Continues For Missing Grand Canyon Hiker

This is Friday, July 24th at 4pm. As of this time, the search continues for what is now believed to be a single hiker rather than a group of three or four. The latest Grand Canyon National Park Press release was posted yesterday:

"Grand Canyon National Park search and rescue personnel are intensifying their search efforts as they re-asses who they are looking for.

"On the evening of Tuesday, July 21, the Grand Canyon Regional Communications Center received a report that at least one, and possibly as many as three young men were overdue from a backpacking trip to the Deer Creek/Thunder River area of Grand Canyon National Park. On Wednesday, Park Rangers found the car of Bryce Gillies, a student at Northern Arizona University (NAU), parked at the Bill Hall Trailhead which is located about half way between Tuweep and the developed area on the North Rim of the park."

Read more....


The reason I know that the search is still ongoing is that I'm listening to radio traffic at the Canyon on RadioReference.com. Another helicopter just took off for the Thunder River area with an hour's worth of fuel. Ground teams continue to search as well.

This is who they're looking for:

Subject: BRYCE GILLIES

PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION
Age: 20
Height: 5’ 3”
Weight: 130
Hair: Brown
Eyes: Blue

Anyone who believes they have seen Mr. Gillies since Saturday, July 18, is encouraged to contact the National Park Service at 928-638-7805.

Saturday, July 25, 6:50am. Here's the latest information from the Arizona Daily Sun. As the report confirms, I could tell by listening to the radio scanner yesterday that searchers had located some items.

1 comment:

Deb Kingsbury said...

I'm afraid that, this time, the story doesn't have a happy ending. Read the breaking news story here.