What is the virus in the Grand Canyon?

norovirus-outbreak-in-grand-canyon. A typical river beach kitchen with dishwash setup. Photo credit: NPS file. Grand Canyon (GC) National Park Service (NPS) officials reported more than 150 cases of acute gastrointestinal illness (AGI) among river runners and hikers between April and May, 2022.



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Grand Canyon reports 118 cases of gastrointestinal illness, norovirus found in several park visitors.

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A large norovirus-associated outbreak of acute gastroenteritis occurred in the Grand Canyon backcountry among river rafters and backpackers during April–June 2022. Preliminary analyses of illness characteristics and portable toilet specimen test results suggested norovirus as the primary causative agent of illness.

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Baird said some visitors have tested positive for norovirus. Norovirus, which can be spread through infected people and contaminated food and water or by touching contaminated surfaces, causes “sudden-onset vomiting and diarrhea” that lasts one to three days, the park said.

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Because many trips use the same campsites and place-portable toilets in the same locations, particles could have been transmitted to surfaces, beach sand or river water where new groups could have encountered them, and then transmitted the virus both from person-to-person and trip-to-trip.

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People have committed suicide at the Grand Canyon in a number of ways. As mentioned above, 75 people have jumped to their death. Another 13 people have taken their own lives by driving off the edge of the canyon. Three of these happened in 1993, not long after the movie Thelma & Louise premiered.

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Airplane and helicopter crashes are the most common cause of death at the Grand Canyon, followed by falling, which includes both accidents and suicides. Other causes of death include hiking and environmental deaths such as dehydration, starving, and freezing, according to data from Hastings & Hastings.

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Grand Canyon, Ariz – Park Rangers recently recovered skeletal remains from the Hermit Creek drainage within Grand Canyon National Park.

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Air pollution has routinely drifted into the canyon from metropolitan areas and nearby coal-fired power plants, affecting visibility from scenic vistas. Water in some streams has been tainted with fecal coliform from trespass cattle and from human waste.

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Impress Your Friends With These Fun Facts!*
  • We don't really know how old it is. ...
  • Grand Canyon creates its own weather! ...
  • There are no dinosaur bones in the canyon. ...
  • But there are lots of other fossils in the area. ...
  • There's a town down in the canyon. ...
  • We're missing 950 million years worth of rocks!


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So how often does this happen? ABC News reports that there are an estimated 800,000 people who fly over the Grand Canyon in helicopters and fixed wing airplanes every year. And in the past 15 years, it notes, almost 50 have died in crashes.

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