Originally published on 7/15/25

Two wildfires are burning up Arizona’s Grand Canyon National Park, forcing hundreds of people to evacuate and destroying over 70 different buildings and landmarks, including the historic Grand Canyon Lodge, the only lodging on the North Rim within the park. We investigate what exactly happened to the beloved housing structure and look back at its almost 10o year history below! 

How the Grand Canyon wildfire started 

The Grand Canyon fires began on July 4 after a lightning strike and have since destroyed over 45,000 acres of land within the national park. 

“While the flame was started with a lightning strike, the federal government chose to manage that fire as a controlled burn during the driest, hottest part of the Arizona summer,” Hobbs wrote on X (formerly known as Twitter) on July 13. 

As of publication, there are two fires by the names of White Sage fire and the Dragon Bravo fire, which is the one responsible for destroying the Grand Canyon Lodge. 

“It’s tragic, it really is,” retired National Park Service chief historian Robert K. Sutton said, per NBC News. 

Hobbs also commented on the loss of the building, writing, “I am incredibly saddened by the destruction of the historic Grand Canyon Lodge, and my heart goes out to every person impacted by the Dragon Bravo Fire near the Grand Canyon’s North Rim. Thank you to every firefighter and first responder taking action to combat the flames,” on X. 

It is believed that no one has died from the fires; however, parts of the park have been closed, and Colorado River trips have been told to avoid Phantom Ranch, which is over 200 miles south of the Dragon Bravo Fire, to help avoid any tragedies. 

Currently, the fire is at 0% containment and has over 200 firefighters working to put it out. 

How Arizona State Governor Katie Hobbs responded to the fires 

Following the initial strike, lighting Hobbs, 55, went to X to voice her dissent about how the whole situation was handled. 

“I am calling on the federal government for a comprehensive and independent investigation into the management of the Fire and a report detailing the decisions that led to this devastating outcome,” she wrote. “An incident of this magnitude demands intense oversight and scrutiny into the federal government’s emergency response. They must first take aggressive action to end the wildfire and prevent further damage. But Arizonans deserve answers for how this fire was allowed to decimate the Grand Canyon National Park.” 

Hobbs, a member of the Democratic Party, was elected to this position in 2023, making her the 24th Governor of Arizona. There is currently no information available on whether the federal government has any plans to investigate the fire. 

A look back at the Grand Canyon Lodge’s 97 year history 

The lodge was originally built in 1928 by an American architect named Gilbert Stanley Underwood, a man who also designed several other National Park buildings in places like Yellowstone, Yosemite, the Grand Tetons and Old Faithful.

Despite his experience in the field, though, his first lodge in the Grand Canyon burned down four years after it was constructed due to a kitchen fire.  It was then rebuilt and reopened in 1938 using a lot of the building’s original stonework, as well as some new Kaibab limestone and timber. It now serves as one of the Grand Canyon’s most well-known and most visited attractions.

“It’s very spiritual there,” tour guide Karne Snickers said, per the BBC.  “Sitting on the deck of that lodge, there isn’t one dry eye from any trip that I’ve ever done when you turn away and have to go back to the van…We have to rebuild this place. It’s going to take time, but it needs to come back. It was a part of history.”

According to the resort’s website, the “Main Lodge” consists of “23 deluxe cabins, and 91 standard cabins, some of which were moved to the north rim campground in 1940.”

As of publication, there is no news on whether they will repair the lodge. It is also unclear how much money it would take to undergo such a massive construction project.

For more information on the fires, click here. 

Link to original: https://www.womansworld.com/entertainment/news/grand-canyon-lodge-north-rim-wildfire-look-into-history