On the 1st of March, 1872, Yellowstone became the first National Park in the United States of
America - an area of wilderness protected by the state for the preservation of wildlife and for
the enjoyment of all. They could hardly have picked a better place. Yellowstone was (and,
thanks to its protected status, remains) a breathtakingly beautiful alien landscape of unique
geological features and thermal springs. These thermal springs in particular, like any wild and
untamed thing, can be deadly - something which the park has wrestled with for its entire existence.
The sights which bring visitors to Yellowstone are numerous. Within the park bison, elk,
wolves and bears are all relatively common sights, and the park also provides an ideal
home for many birds and reptiles. These creatures inhabit a landscape which is
a hotbed of volcanic activity. Steam vents from holes in the ground known as fumaroles,
while elsewhere geothermal activity generates huge quantities of heat resulting in natural hot
springs and patches of boiling mud inhabited by a rich culture of heat-loving microorganisms...
including bacteria which create some dazzling colours. In some places geezers of superheated
water jet from the ground at regular (or irregular) intervals. The most famous of
these is Old Faithful: a geezer that has been erupting on a predictable schedule for decades.
Early records exist of many deaths from accidental immersion in Yellowstone's thermal pools.
One such death took place on the 24th of August, 1926. At around 8:00pm pastor
Gilbert Eakins was walking near the West Thumb area of the park with his family. At some point
Eakins slipped, falling into a pool. In his rush to extricate himself from the boiling hot water,
which at this point had only burned the lower half of his body, he accidentally fell into
another hot pool before finally slipping and falling headlong into the first one again.
By the time he was finally able to get out of the water he was horrifically burned. At the time
in 1926 the treatment options available were rudimentary. A nearby doctor removed
the pastor's clothing, smothered him in oil, and gave him a grain of morphine to relieve his pain.
Having been fully immersed, however, the poor man was burned over his entire body
and had also swallowed a quantity of boiling water. Despite their very best efforts he
could not be saved, and passed away as he was being transported from the park.
Even in this early case it's clear that injuries caused by pools can be horrendous, and complicated
too. Internal burns are an imminent threat to life, and the pain of minor burns can lead to a
victim sustaining more serious ones as they try to escape. A simple slip or trip - usually of
no consequence whatsoever - can be the cause of death if it happens in the wrong place.
Another common cause of accidents in the thermal features of Yellowstone
is pets. One such incident took place on the 20th of July, 1981. At around 1:00pm
David Kirwan and his friend Ronald Ratliff were visiting the Fountain Paint Pot cluster of mud
pots on the eastern edge of the park. The pair had with them Ratliff's dog Moosie. Of course,
since it wasn't safe to have dogs so close to the boiling waters of the mud pots,
they left Moosie in their truck for the duration of their brief visit. Unfortunately Moosie
escaped the vehicle and, excited by her new environment, ran into one of the nearby pools.
The moment he heard and saw his friend's dog in distress Kirwan started to make his way into
the pool to attempt a rescue. Bystanders tried to dissuade him from doing so, but before they could
Kirwia had dived bodily into the boiling water. Witnesses report that Kirwan was able to reach
the dog but was unable to help the animal before the pain of his burns overwhelmed him
and he floundered desperately back to shore. As they pulled him out of the pool witnesses
noted that he appeared to have gone blind, and that he was severely burned all over his body.
The dog he had been trying to rescue perished just moments after Kirwan escaped the pool.
Death was not instant for Kirwan, although at least his pain appeared to recede after some time.
He talked coherently as he was helped away from Fountain Paint Pot
and transported to a clinic at Old Faithful. There he was given fluids and pain relief ready
for onward transport to a hospital in Salt Lake City, where he would pass away the next morning.
Dogs are, for good reason, not permitted in many parts of Yellowstone National Park...
and yet each year several incidents in which visitors sustain burns
take place as a result of dogs entering pools and their owners rushing in to rescue them.
Accidents take place even amongst those who work in Yellowstone.
Each year a number of college students are employed in summer jobs in the park.
They are given accommodation in the park and enjoy an unforgettable summer of hiking,
working and bonding with fellow employees. On the 21st of August, 2000, a group of these summer
employees went swimming in the Firehole River near Mound Geezer. What began as an afternoon dip
turned into an evening spent in and around the water, and night had fallen by the time the
group decided to make its way back to a nearby car park across a stretch of unmaintained land.
Because they had stayed out longer than planned nobody in the group had a flashlight.
Nevertheless they were relatively confident of their ability to navigate safely.
In high spirits happy after a day spent together in good company they made their
way homewards. Three of their number lagged behind, walking hand in hand through the dark.
At one point the trio came across what looked, in the low light, like a narrow
stream - something which they believed they could easily jump over. They were wrong.
They were instead standing above a pit of boiling water which only looked narrow because of
overhanging ledges of dirt on either side. Unaware of the danger the three leapt across together.
They landed on the dirt ledge on the far side, which instantly gave way.
Together they plunged down into the hot spring below.
Hearing the screams of the three who had fallen into the spring
others from the group rushed back and pulled them out as quickly as they could.
Despite this, all three suffered major burns over most of their bodies.
Two would, with expert medical care, survive. One would not. Sara Hulphers - just 20 years old - who
was the shortest in the group and had therefore been the most thoroughly immersed, died from her
injuries. Sara's funeral was attended by hundreds. She had been loved by all who knew her, and
according to friends and family had been immensely happy working in Yellowstone that summer.
Her loss was keenly felt by both her colleagues and those from her home state of Washington.
These are just some of the thermal injuries that have been recorded in
Yellowstone's long history. Many more exist - incidents of people venturing off boardwalks,
stumbling backwards into potholes, or diving into water which they believed to be merely warm
and not boiling hot. That the hot springs of Yellowstone are dangerous is indisputable.
Normally when there is a danger to the public this acute steps are taken to ensure that the
danger is neutralized - some people argue that this should be done in Yellowstone:
the springs should be fenced, warning signs erected by every pool and river,
visitors shepherded around by guides and kept from danger by railings and repeated warnings.
If Yellowstone was a workplace or a residential area these requests would be more than reasonable.
However, it is not. Yellowstone is a wilderness - one only very slightly tamed.
In any wilderness there is danger. To make Yellowstone completely safe would be to make
it no longer wild, and to take away that which makes it worth preserving in the first place.
That's not to say that safety isn't a priority. The National Park Service is made up of ordinary
people - people who love the landscape they work in, and who feel every death and injury
that takes place there keenly. At the same time, however, they recognize that incidents
like the ones described here cannot practically be prevented through barriers and signage. Instead,
the focus is on education - on making people aware that terrible things can happen in the
course of exploring somewhere wild and untamed, and that this is not a reason not to explore,
but instead to do so with caution and a quiet awareness of how unforgiving nature can be.