The Grand Canyon National Park announced in a press release on Wednesday that it would close to the public after receiving a request to do so from Coconino County health officials.

The park would close immediately until further notice, the press release said. The closure follows an announcement earlier this week that a Delaware North employee is the Grand Canyon South Rim's first identified case of the new coronavirus.

"The Department of the Interior and the National Park Service will continue to follow the guidance of state and local health officials in making determinations about our operations," department Secretary David Bernhardt said in the press release. "As soon as we received the letter from the Health and Human Services Director and Chief Health Officer for Coconino County recommending the closure of Grand Canyon National Park, we closed the park."

The South Rim is home to more than 2,500 residents from the Grand Canyon Village inside the park and the neighboring Town of Tusayan and Valle, several miles outside the park. In recent weeks, several residents called for the park’s closure to protect themselves from potential exposure to COVID-19 and a shortage of already limited supplies.

Since mid-March, facilities inside the park have gradually closed, including restaurants, lodging and trails, and the National Park Service suspended entrance fees. Meanwhile, the reported statewide count of coronavirus cases continued to increase to more than 1,400 and 29 known deaths by Wednesday morning.

As of Wednesday morning, there were 85 identified cases of COVID-19 and four deaths related to the new virus in Coconino County, which encompasses the Grand Canyon.

Resident: We still have visitors from around the world

Residents at Grand Canyon South Rim shared on social media Wednesday images of barricades being placed along residential roads to prevent visitors from entering the park.

Amanda Bissette told The Arizona Republic it was initially unclear whether the park was being fully closed or if the barricades were part of more restrictions the park service was implementing that day.

She said she rode her bike around Grand Canyon Village to see signs indicating roads were only accessible to residents and even witnessed visitors being turned away by law enforcement.

“It just seems like, honestly, it's unfolding by the hour,” she said minutes before the park service’s official announcement of the closure. “It’s like it's being called as we speak, which is why I think we’re not getting any communication.”

Despite the restrictions and facility closures put in place by the park service and Grand Canyon South Rim concessionaires, visitors from across the globe continued to travel to the area, including some who ignored the trail closures, Bissette said.

She explained that several residents started reaching out to numerous state officials urging for the park’s closure at least a week ago.

The Navajo Nation, Coconino County Board of Supervisors, Flagstaff City Council and Reps. Raúl Grijalva and Tom O’Halleran have since publicly asked for the park to close.

According to Bissette, those same residents expressed excitement on social media and through texts Wednesday about the impending closure but did so from their homes following news days earlier of the community’s first known COVID-19 case.

The man, who lives in a dorm in Grand Canyon Village and works at Yavapai Lodge, is one of her coworkers who had recently traveled, she said.

“I think now that there’s a case in the park, we just want to be contained without worrying that more will be coming in because we know who’s here now and we know that we can contain this virus and move forward, really,” she said.

Conservation group: This took too long

Calls for national park closures across the country, including at Grand Canyon South Rim, garnered international media attention late last week, with many focusing on U.S. Department of Interior Secretary David Bernhardt.

On March 26, the National Parks Conservation Association called for the closure of Grand Canyon South Rim and Zion National Park. In a press release at the time, association President and CEO Theresa Pierno said Bernhardt refused to close the parks and "needlessly (put) lives at risk by operating as if this is business as usual."

The association said in a statement Wednesday it supported the Grand Canyon South Rim's closure but was concerned about the length of time it took to reach the decision.

"We support the sensible decision to close Grand Canyon National Park to protect the health of local communities, park staff and visitors at this time," said Kevin Dahl, senior Arizona program manager at the association. "While the Grand Canyon is a huge park, in practice many visitors congregate at the same viewpoints, parking lots and trails which increases the likelihood of transmitting coronavirus."

Glacier National Park in Montana and Arches National Park in Utah closed late last week following closures of the Great Smoky Mountains and Yellowstone national parks, among others.

“However we remain concerned that it took so long to authorize the closure after concerns were first raised by the park managers, local communities, tribal communities and local emergency services," he continued. "The Department of Interior must make it easier for park managers to make these common-sense decisions that can save lives."

Reach the reporter at chelsea.curtis@arizonarepublic.com or follow her on Twitter @curtis_chels.

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