7-Day Jail for Woman Walking in Yellowstone Thermal


A Connecticut woman has been sentenced to seven days in prison for walking on the thermal floor in Yellowstone National Park, an act that authorities have described as extremely dangerous.

The woman, Madeline Casey, 26, was convicted on 18 August. According to a statement from the U.S. District Attorney for the District of Wyoming.. According to court records, he was charged with traveling in thermal areas and engaging in inappropriate behavior.

Ms Casey and two others, who were not identified in the statement, made their way to a thermal pool and geyser in Norris Geyser Basin, one of the largest thermal areas in Yellowstone, after leaving the marked boardwalk on a recent visit. months, officials said.

In the statement, it was stated that worried viewers took photos and videos of the three people walking on the thermal floor.

“The ground is fragile and thin, and boiling water just below the surface can cause severe or fatal burns,” said Morgan Warthin, spokesperson for Yellowstone National Park. “More than 20 people have died from burns after entering or falling into Yellowstone’s hot springs.”

Officials said the park is doing a “very good job” of warning people to stay on boardwalks and paths in thermal areas and educating them about unstable ground, boiling water and boiling mud.

“Still, there will always be those like Miss Casey who don’t understand this,” said US attorney Bob Murray in a statement. “While criminal prosecution and jail time may seem difficult, it’s better than spending time in the hospital burn unit.”

A woman who visited Yellowstone last year while it was closed due to the pandemic suffered severe burns when she fell into a hot spring or steam vent while taking a photo. The Associated Press reported.

The park’s thermal features include hot springs, geysers, steam vents, and mud pots. The AP reported that last fall, a man walking from the sidewalk fell into a hot spring and also suffered severe burns. one in 2016 23-year-old man dies after falling into acidic mud.

A man who was reported to have been walking in a thermal area around the same time as Ms. Casey, who was later sentenced, said he did not see signs warning people not to enter the thermal area on Friday because it was too hot. down to the ground.

“I just wanted to see where the steam was rising and take a picture,” said the man, Floyd K. Parham. “After taking the photo, I went back to the van but they said I had passed through the thermal zone.”

According to National Park Service websiteThe Norris Geyser Basin is the hottest and oldest of Yellowstone’s thermal zones. Evidence suggests that Norris has had thermal properties for at least 115,000 years, with very few of them below the boiling point of water.

Ms. Casey’s lawyer, Ryan Wright, declined to comment on Friday. A message left for Ms Casey through her lawyer did not return on Friday.

In addition to her prison sentence, Ms. Casey was ordered to pay a fine of $1,000, a $1,000 community service payment to the Yellowstone Forever Geological Resource Fund, and a $40 fee.

It was not immediately clear why Ms. Casey had been selected for her testimony by federal prosecutors. It was also unclear whether charges were brought against the other two people who were with him.

Messages left on Friday to Yellowstone and the US Attorney’s Office were not immediately returned.



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