83-year-old man who went missing near Grand Canyon rescued after overnight search

An 83-year-old man who failed to return from a hike inside the Grand Canyon National Park was safely rescued after an all-night search, Arizona officials said on social media Saturday.

The man, identified by the National Park Service as Gerald Guinn, of Utah, was hiking with another person at 12:30 p.m. on July 21, the Kane County Sheriff’s Office said. The two were hiking in a “remote location” on the edge of the Kaibab National Forest. They split up to search for a nearby historic object, but Guinn never reunited with the other hiker. 

The other hiker searched for several hours, then requested help. The sheriff’s office Search and Rescue team conducted an overnight search, using drones and search dogs, to no avail. 

The next morning, the Grand Canyon National Park Service took over the search efforts, according to the sheriff’s office, adding a helicopter and ground teams to the search. The Kane County search and rescue team rejoined the search that afternoon. 

In the early afternoon, the NPS received a cell phone ping indicating Guinn’s general location. The ping moved the search to the east. An NPS helicopter located Guinn, who was well enough to wave to the pilot. 

The helicopter could not land in the area due to the terrain, so a Kane County search and rescue team was sent to assess and stabilize Guinn. The team found him to be “in good spirits, just cold, and non-ambulatory.” The rescue team provided liquids and warm layers. 

The Kane County team and a paramedic transported Guinn back to the road. It took about 20 people to move him, with team members carrying the man, clearing downed logs, and flagging hazards. Once at the road, Guinn was met by Kane County emergency medical services. He was examined, cleared and released. The operation was completed at 1:30 a.m., about a day and a half after the man first began his hike.