GRAND CANYON NATIONAL PARK, Arizona (AP) — The main pipeline that supplies water to Grand Canyon National Park has failed after a series of breaks, causing a sudden and widespread shutdown of hotel stays during one of the busiest times of year for the famous tourist destination.

Water restrictions will be in place throughout the Labor Day holiday, when hotels will be near or at full capacity. That’s an unprecedented result, even for a pipeline that has a long history of frequent outages.

The park has been experiencing water supply problems since July 8, and water is not currently being pumped to either the south or north rims of the canyon, officials said.

Heidi Zahner Younts of Iowa City, Iowa, wrote in a comment on the park’s Facebook page on Wednesday that she had planned “the trip of a lifetime” with her daughter for the weekend and called the situation sad.

However, on Wednesday evening, she told The Associated Press via Facebook message that she was able to book another hotel outside the park, saying she hoped the water restrictions would mean “less traffic and people.”

The 12.5-mile-long Transcanyon Waterline, originally built in the 1960s, supplies drinking water to facilities on the South Rim and inside the canyon. Park officials say the line has exceeded its expected lifespan.

Since 2010, there have been more than 85 major breaks that have disrupted water supplies, but none of them have forced the water restrictions that park authorities call “Level 4″—that is, until four recent significant breaks.

These water restrictions will prevent visitors from staying overnight starting Thursday, including at El Tovar, Bright Angel Lodge, Maswik Lodge and Phantom Ranch. The impact was not immediately visible Wednesday evening, as some hotel restaurants continued to serve food and parking lots at the South Rim were filled with cars.

Hotels outside the park in the town of Tusayan, Arizona, are unaffected and the park remains open during the day.

Carved by the Colorado River and known for its vast desert landscapes, the Grand Canyon welcomed nearly 523,000 visitors last August and more than 466,000 visitors last September.

Josh Coddington, communications director for the Arizona Office of Tourism, said he expects an increase in calls from people wanting to know if they can visit the Grand Canyon.

“The Grand Canyon is known not only in the United States but all over the world and people like to visit it,” he said.

While the park is not completely closed, the perception that it is could have a negative impact on the towns and communities where tourists stay, shop and eat on their way to the canyon, including Flagstaff, Williams and Tusayan on the south side and Cameron on the east side.

Park management hopes to fully resume operations for overnight guests at the South Rim as soon as possible.

Complicating the restoration effort, however, is that the fractures occurred in a narrow part of the canyon known as “the box.” This area is prone to rock falls and is subject to high temperatures at this time of year. A photo of one of the most recent fractures released by park officials shows a funnel of water spraying from the pipe into the narrow canyon.

“It’s definitely a challenge when a pipeline breaks,” Baird said, citing safety concerns for crews tasked with repairing the damage.

The burst occurred during a recently begun $208 million water main rehabilitation project by the National Park Service. The modernization of the associated water supply system is scheduled to be completed in 2027.

The park says it aims to meet the water supply needs of six million annual visitors and its 2,500 year-round residents.

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Yamat reported from Las Vegas. Associated Press journalists Walter Berry in Phoenix, Felicia Fonseca in Flagstaff, Arizona, and Lisa Baumann in Bellingham, Washington, contributed to this report.

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