[Geysers] Thermal burn--Artist Paintpots area (Stephens)

[Jere Bush]

FYI!

Stay on the trails and be careful.



> [Original Message]
> From: Lynn Stephens <lstephens2006 at hotmail.com>
> To: geysers at lists.wallawalla.edu <geysers at lists.wallawalla.edu>
> Date: 5/30/2008 6:42:51 PM
> Subject: [Geysers] Thermal burn--Artist Paintpots area (Stephens)
>
>
>
> YELLOWSTONE S ARTISTS PAINTPOTS AREA TEMPORARILY CLOSED
>
> The Artists Paintpots area in Yellowstone National Park has been
> temporarily closed due to visitor safety concerns.
>
> The area of colorful, hot mud springs is located along a one mile loop
> trail east of the park s Grand Loop road, about two and a half miles south
> of Norris Junction.
>
> A visitor was injured Thursday afternoon when she was hiking on the
> established dirt trail with family members. Utah resident Jeanette Hogan
> says she stepped in a surface puddle of rainwater along the edge of the
> trail when the crust beneath gave way. She broke through to a previously
> undiscovered pool of hot water, and received burns to her ankle and lower
> leg.
>
> Members of the park s trail crew were working on another section of the
> Artists Paintpots trail at the time of the accident. Crew members were
> able to provide immediate first aid and summon park emergency personnel,
> who took the patient by ambulance to Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center
> in Idaho Falls. The extent of Hogan s injuries and current condition are
> unavailable.
>
> Park geologists are currently evaluating the area. The water in the pool
> is 171 degrees Fahrenheit. Water boils at about 197 degrees Fahrenheit at
> that altitude. The water at the surface of the hot pool was found to be
> slightly acidic, with a pH similar to vinegar.
>
> The parking lot and trail will remain temporarily closed until the area
can
> be safely reopened to visitors.
>
> While boardwalks and designated trails help protect park visitors and
> prevent damage to delicate formations, Yellowstone National Park is a
> dynamic, geologically active place. Scalding water can lie underneath
> thin, breakable crusts. Many geyser eruptions are unpredictable, and
> thermal features are near or above boiling temperatures. Four people
> treated for thermal burns in the park in 2007. 
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