Human remains have been recovered from the Colorado River more than two weeks after a devastating Grand Canyon flash flood killed two hikers and left a Wyoming man missing, but authorities have not said whether the remains are those of Timothy Allen Smith of Star Valley Ranch.
Smith's wife, Carrie, acknowledged the discovery Tuesday morning while asking people to continue praying as the family waits.
“We are aware that the Grand Canyon found remains yesterday,” she wrote in a public Facebook post on Tuesday morning. “We ask that you continue to pray alongside us! Please be considerate of those handling the situation and those going through this difficult time.”
She ended the brief message with the faith she and the couple's three children have repeatedly turned to during the more than two-week search.
“God is good and loves us unconditionally through every step of life.”
Remains Found Downriver
The National Park Service said Grand Canyon National Park rangers responded Monday to a report of human remains near Crystal Rapid.
The remains were recovered and transferred to the Coconino County Medical Examiner's Office for identification.
NPS has released no additional information about the remains of Tuesday afternoon.
Smith, 53, a pilot, has been missing since Aug. 29, when a violent flash flood tore through Bright Angel Canyon and the Phantom Ranch area.
He traveled into the canyon with longtime friends John Giusti, 46, and Brent Rosenkranz, 42, both with ties to Granbury, Texas.
Both men were killed.
Giusti's body was recovered near Crystal Rapid shortly after the flood. Rosenkranz's body was also recovered during the initial search.
Smith remained the only person unaccounted for after authorities worked through reports of potentially missing hikers and accounted for others who had been in the canyon.
Crystal Rapid is about 10 miles downstream from Phantom Ranch, one of the areas devastated by the flood.
Two Weeks Of Searching
Searchers have spent more than two weeks combing the canyon floor and Colorado River for Smith.
The effort has included searches around the delta near Phantom Ranch and river patrols downstream, where flood debris could have been carried.
More recently, specialized search dogs and their handlers were brought into some of the most heavily damaged areas.
Cochise County Search and Rescue handlers Sue Haveruk and Ursula Ritchie entered the canyon Sept. 9 with K-9s Whiskey and Alto to search flood debris. Temperatures on the canyon floor reached 109 degrees, and the team ultimately spent an unexpected night in the canyon after it could not be extracted as originally planned.
Border Patrol Search, Trauma and Rescue Unit handlers and K-9s have also searched along the river.
The search has unfolded amid an enormous cleanup operation after the flood ripped apart bridges, campgrounds and water infrastructure.
Smith's family has chronicled the long wait publicly, repeatedly thanking searchers and asking people to pray for Tim and the crews looking for him.
'Solid Family Man'
Last week brought an especially painful milestone.
Smith was supposed to return home Wednesday, Sept. 9 — his birthday.
Hundreds of people gathered the previous Sunday at Lakeside Baptist Church in Granbury, the Texas church Smith and his family once attended, to pray for him and for the families of Giusti and Rosenkranz.
Pastor Mark Forrest, who knew Smith personally, previously told Cowboy State Daily that Smith was “a real solid family man” who served his church well.
Tim and Carrie volunteered in the church's children and preschool ministry before the family moved to Wyoming.
Forrest said the congregation's faith was helping its members confront the uncertainty surrounding the three longtime friends.
“They were all three such great family men,” Forrest said.
Kolby Fedore can be reached at kolby@cowboystatedaily.com.
