Headlines · Read News
PHOENIX -- National Park Service officials expect to restore a reliable water supply in the Grand Canyon in weeks — not months — as the deadly flash flood on Aug. 29 didn’t damage most of a near-complete pipeline project. They said they were just over a month away from completing a major upgrade to the sole 12.5-mile-long Transcanyon Waterline, which supplied water for millions of visitors to the Grand Canyon’s South Rim and about 1,600 residents of Grand Canyon Village. Construction of a temporary water intake to match the park’s pre-flood pumping capacity will start this week.
Park officials encourage residents and tourists to continue conserving water as they work on a $200 million repair and upgrade project. Before the floods, officials said the project would ensure the park’s water supply needs for the next 50 years or more. Dave Black, deputy incident commander at the National Park Service’s Western Incident Management Team, stated that the damage to the old pipe is irrelevant to the new solution.
Every gallon conserved helps crews complete the work in the canyon. The flash flood caused two deaths, left one person missing, and resulted in about 80 rescues. Search and rescue efforts are ongoing.
This marks the third time overnight stays have been paused due to pipeline failures since August 2024. Water conservation measures were implemented for residents to protect limited stored water on the South Rim. Gloria Barrett, a longtime resident of Grand Canyon Village, shut off her water heater to conserve water, eating on paper plates and reusing cooking water for her dog.
She noted the pipeline has broken over 85 times since 2010, but this flood caused extreme damage. The pipeline, which has been operational longer than intended, crosses rugged terrain from the South Rim to the canyon floor and back. Many families in Grand Canyon Village live paycheck to paycheck, making leaving the area infeasible.
Tourism and recreation professor Bing Pan highlighted the impact on seasonal workers, who earn around $15 to $20 per hour and lack savings, risking job loss due to slowed services. The closures affected Barrett’s transport business and tourism-dependent economy.
