Grand Canyon's washed-out pipeline also causes economic damage
Deadly flooding at the Grand Canyon has destroyed a critical water pipeline, forcing the closure of lodging facilities at the South Rim. The indefinite shutdown is causing significant economic disruption for the park and surrounding tourism-dependent regions.
Why it matters
The incident underscores the vulnerability of critical infrastructure in national parks and the cascading economic effects on the broader tourism industry.
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Deadly flooding at the Grand Canyon is damaging the area’s economy, with a washed-out pipeline severing the South Rim’s water supply and shutting down lodging at the popular tourist vista for an indefinite period.
The national park remained open Tuesday but tourists who planned to stay overnight — many traveling long distances for reservations from a year or more ago — have had to scramble to find rooms elsewhere.
The flooding that killed two people and left a third missing washed out an already decrepit pipeline spanning the canyon that supplied every shower, faucet and spigot at the South Rim.
Now, hundreds of rooms are no longer available due to insufficient water, thwarting plans for thousands of tourists staying at the canyon or headed that way in the days ahead.
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