Authorities: Body found in Grand Canyon believed to be missing 14-year-old


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GRAND CANYON, Ariz. — A body believed to be a 14-year-old Tennessee boy who went missing along with his step-grandmother, a retired emergency medical technician from Vernal, was found Friday, park officials said.

The body believed to be that of Jackson Standefer was recovered in the Colorado River about 18 miles downriver from where he was last seen, according to Grand Canyon National Park spokeswoman Robin Martin. The body was sent to the Coconino County Medical Examiner for positive identification.

The body was located by a river rafting party, Martin said.

Standefer was reported missing, along with Lou-Ann Merrell, 62, on April 15 when they were swept into roaring backcountry stream called Tapeats Creek. Merrell remains missing.

Merrell had led dozens of trips into the remote region for youngsters, along with her husband Randy Merrell, a co-founder of the popular Merrell Boot Co. Standefer was an eighth-grade student at an all-boys school in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

On April 19, a group of neighbors and Merrell's former colleagues joined a team from Uintah County Search and Rescue searching the area where the hikers were last seen, and at the meeting point of the creek they fell into and the Colorado River. A drone, a helicopter and an inflatable raft with a motor were utilized for the search.

Though Merrell remains missing, a memorial service was held for her at an LDS Stake Center in Vernal on Sunday, according to an obituary posted on April 20.

Martin said Friday the search for Merrell remains ongoing.

“The search for Lou-Ann Merrell is continuing in a limited and continuous capacity,” Martin said. “We’ve given information river trips and hiking parties that will be using that area and we’ve put public information about it.”

Contributing: Brianna Bodily

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