Body found in Canyon:
Grand Canyon National Park rangers have recovered a body on the Colorado River, and officials believe it’s that of a 14-yearold Tennessee boy who was swept away, along with his stepgrandmother, during a hiking trip in a remote part of the Canyon.
Grand Canyon National Park rangers on Friday recovered a body on the Colorado River, and they say it may be that of a 14year-old Tennessee boy who was swept away in the Canyon along with his stepgrandmother.
The Grand Canyon Regional Communications Center was notified by a commercial river-trip operator that a body was seen on the river Friday.
Park rangers took the body by helicopter to the Canyon’s rim, where it was transferred to the Coconino County medical examiner.
Park officials, in a press release, said they body may be that of Jackson Standefer of Chattanooga. The teen was reported missing April 15, along with his stepgrandmother, Lou-Ann Merrell, 62, after both lost their footing while crossing Tapeats Creek.
The release provided no updated information was provided on Merrell, who remains missing.
A multiday searchand-rescue operation was conducted after the two went missing.
The medical examiner will confirm the body’s identity and conduct an investigation of the incident with the help of the National Park Service, park officials said.
The Associated Press reported April 18 that family members identified the hikers who were swept away.
Merrell is the wife of Randy Merrell, co-founder of Merrell Boot Co.
Standefer’s uncle, Mark McOmie, said Randy Merrell and the boy’s mother were also on the family hiking trip. Officials were alerted when an emergency GPS locator beacon was set off below the canyon’s North Rim. According to McOmie, the Merrells were frequent hikers and were familiar with the area.
McOmie said he hoped the pair’s experience and hiking background would help them survive.
“If they can get to a spot where they can not be in the water and stay warm, she’s got the skills needed to get them through it. The odds aren’t great. But given their skills and knowledge of the area, that will probably lead to the best possible outcome,” McOmie said in a report by the Associated Press.
When the pair’s backpacks were found, the family had “mixed feelings,” the report said. Although it looked as if they were able to take the backpacks off, the fact that they didn’t have access to their gear concerned them.
The Associated Press contributed to this article.