UPDATE: The search has resumed today and includes three ground teams plus a helicopter, drone and a motorized boat, which was checking along the banks of the Colorado River near its confluence with the creek, park spokeswoman Robin Martin said.
The ground teams, a total of approximately 20 people, remained in the canyon overnight, Martin said.
ORIGINAL STORY: PHOENIX – Authorities were searching Grand Canyon National Park on Monday for an eighth-grade McCallie School student and his stepgrandmother, who were swept downstream Saturday as they tried to cross a creek over the weekend in a remote part of the park.
Two fellow hikers in their group alerted officials by setting off an emergency GPS locator beacon in the backcountry below the canyon’s North Rim, according to Chief Ranger Matt Vandzura of the National Park Service.
This undated photo provided by Mark McOmie shows Jackson Standefer. (Mark McOmie via AP)
This Sunday, April 16, 2017, photo provided by the National Park Service shows Tapeats Creek in Grand Canyon National Park in Arizona. Authorities are searching for Jackson Standefer, 14, and Lou-Ann Merrell, 62, after the pair lost their footing Saturday and fell into the water during a family trip in a remote area of the Arizona park. (National Park Service via AP)
This undated photo provided by Mark McOmie shows Jackson Standefer. Authorities searched Grand Canyon National Park on Monday, April 17, 2017, for eighth-grader Standefer and his step-grandmother who were swept away as they tried to cross a creek during a family trip in a remote part of the park. Chief Ranger Matt Vandzura says the two lost their footing Saturday. (Mark McOmie via AP)He said the boy, Jackson Standefer, 14, and his 62-year-old stepgrandmother lost their footing and were swept away in Tapeats Creek, a tributary of the Colorado River that runs through the Arizona landmark.