Three hikers survive five-hour Grand Canyon flash flood by clinging to a ledge

While hiking in the Grand Canyon on a Saturday afternoon, Jessica Buscher, Melanie McGuirk and Katie Brink were caught by a rapid flash flood caused by an intensifying monsoon storm. The surge of muddy water, rocks and branches forced the three women onto a precarious rock ledge, where they became separated and each thought the others had been carried off. The ordeal lasted about five hours, during which they clung to the ledge as the canyon roared with debris.

A rescue helicopter eventually spotted them, returned after a short interval, and lifted them to safety. Their rescue was part of a broader operation in which the Arizona Department of Public Safety’s Ranger 3 helicopter completed 13 flights, evacuating 61 hikers. The flood, which struck on August 29, also caused trail and bridge damage and resulted in two fatalities elsewhere in the canyon.