Grand Canyon Flood: Missing Hiker Timothy Smith Found, Death Toll Reaches Three
The body found in the Grand Canyon this week was identified as Timothy Allen Smith, the last person missing after August's flash floods, bringing the toll to three.
Human remains recovered in the Grand Canyon this week belong to the final person unaccounted for after late-August flash flooding, the victim's wife said Thursday, raising the death toll from the disaster to three.
Timothy Allen Smith, 53, was a pilot from Star Valley in western Wyoming. His remains were located Monday near Crystal Rapids along the Colorado River, which flows through the canyon.
The two other members of his backcountry party — Brent Rosenkranz, 42, and John Giusti, 46, both of Granbury, Texas — had been found earlier. Smith grew up in Granbury and lived with his wife in Star Valley Ranch, roughly 40 miles (64 kilometers) southwest of Jackson.
The three men were on a multiday hiking, fishing and camping trip when floodwaters tore through the canyon.
During the two-day deluge, search teams used night vision and other equipment to locate people needing rescue. They drew on the park's permit system and checked vehicle license plates to track those still missing. More than 80 people were rescued.
As the search narrowed, only Smith remained unaccounted for. In a Facebook video at the time, his wife, Carrie, and their children thanked supporters for their prayers.
On Tuesday morning, Carrie Smith posted that the family knew a body had been found a day earlier and asked others to pray with them. She confirmed in a Facebook post on Thursday that the remains had been identified as her husband's.
"My family has done a lot of waiting over the last three weeks … waiting and hoping Tim (Daddy) would come home, waiting and wondering if the remains found were Tim (Daddy)," she wrote. "We no longer have to wait, Tim was found two days ago by the Rangers at Grand Canyon National Park. Not in the way we had hoped, but we know that he was doing something he loved with John and Brent."
She added that the three men "loved the Lord and were a shining light for Him," and that the impact of their lives on others was still being shown to their families daily.
The National Park Service and the Department of the Interior did not immediately respond to emailed requests for comment Thursday. Neither agency has publicly identified the remains found this week.
The flooding began Aug. 29 during the summer monsoon season, when clear skies can quickly give way to thunderstorms and heavy rain. Desert terrain can funnel water from a downpour into sudden torrents that race down previously dry gullies and canyons.
The rain fell on part of a North Rim burn area left by a lightning-caused wildfire in July 2025. That fire destroyed the historic Grand Canyon Lodge, cabins and other structures. Burn scars can worsen flash flooding because less vegetation remains to absorb runoff.
The flood damaged a pipeline spanning the canyon that supplies water to millions of tourists and residents. The resulting water shortage halted all overnight lodging until the pipeline could be restored. National Park Service officials said recently that they expected to restore a reliable water supply in the canyon within weeks rather than months, after determining that most of a near-complete pipeline project escaped damage in the flood.
Many hiking trails and lodging areas remain closed, and water has been shut off in the inner canyon, prompting advisories urging hikers to carry their own water or water filtration devices.