Hikers rescued after flood surges into narrow canyon

A helicopter rescued hikers clinging to tree branches and perched on boulders as a flash flood tore through a normally quiet creek in Arizona, where unpredictable summer storms can send surging torrents into canyons.

Seventeen hikers were stranded Sunday in a scenic canyon on the outskirts of Tucson, just over a week after floodwaters killed 10 members of an extended family more than 140 miles to the north.

In southern Arizona, the final two hikers were lifted to safety Monday from Tanque Verde Falls after they spent the night stuck on the side of a cliff in a rocky, narrow canyon, authorities said. There was no immediate indication that any of the hikers were seriously injured.

Though “everyone is accounted for and everyone is alive,” the rescues were a reminder of the dangers of flash flooding during the monsoon season, when bursts of heavy rain can overwhelm usually calm waterways, said Sheriff ’s Deputy Cody Gress.

When rains ease triple-digit summer temperatures, people often go hiking at just the time the danger of flash flooding has skyrocketed, the agency said. On July 15, a family celebrating a birthday at a swimming hole in central Arizona was swept away by a wall of water that cascaded down a canyon without warning after a storm.

On Sunday, a police helicopter lowered a rescuer to eight hikers, including a 4-year-old boy, fastening them to a hoist that hauled them one by one to waiting rescuers.

Four were plucked from the creek as they clung to tree branches with water up to their waists, said Shelley Littin of the Southern Arizona Rescue Association. Others scrambled to safety on rock ledges.

The creek normally has just a trickle of water, allowing people to play in shallow pools, but Littin said the water level jumped about tenfold in five minutes and was at least 6 to 8 feet deep.

“We were extremely lucky not to lose anyone,” she said.

Crews dropped food, water and blankets to the two remaining hikers stuck on a ledge before they could be rescued Monday morning.

Pima County Sheriff’s Department An image from video shows a stranded hiker being lifted to safety Sunday from flash flooding on the outskirts of Tucson.