Artists’ Paintpots area closed after accident

[Monday June 2, 2008] Yellowstone National Park’s Artists’ Paintpots area is temporarily closed after a Park visitor walking on a marked trail  broke through the earth’s crust and suffered burns to an ankle and lower leg.

Jeannette Hogan was walking in the popular area north of Norris Junction when she stepped in a puddle of rainwater on the edge of the trail. She broke through the crust, with her leg falling into a previously unknown pool of hot water located directly next to a fence making the walkway. The Utah resident received immediate first aid from Park workers already in the area, and she was taken to Idaho Falls for treatment.

The water wasn’t at the boiling point — it was later measured by Park personnel at 171 degrees Fahrenheit, lower than the 197-degrees Fahrenheit boiling point — but it is slightly acidic.

The lesson, of course, is that care should be taken at all times in Yellowstone, which is a very, very active hot spot. You’re never too far away from harmful or potentially deadly water.