Five tourists hospitalized after crashing into 'hot acidic lake' in Yellowstone
Topics: News, US News, Environment, Cars
Kit Roberts
Featured Image Credit: National Park Service/Yellowstone National Park
Topics: News, US News, Environment, Cars
An investigation is underway after a car carrying five people sank into a geothermal pool in Yellowstone National Park.
Images from the scene on July 12 show the vehicle submerged well within the Semi-Centennial Geyser as officers look on.
The hot springs at Yellowstone National Park can be very dangerous to fall into if you are not able to get out of them.
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But while there have been some awful incidents in the past, luckily on this occasion everyone was able to get out of the car in time.
The geyser itself has not been reported as active for more than 100 years.
In 1922 it had extremely violent eruptions which reportedly saw water ejected some 300 feet into the air.
Fortunately, the geyser has remained passive since then.
Nonetheless, it's not good experience to fall into the geyser as the water temperature can reach some 105 degrees Fahrenheit, or 41 degrees Celsius.
It also has a pH of just over three, so is quite acidic.
As a point of reference, it would be a bit like jumping into a hot tub filled with vinegar, so not a particularly pleasant experience.
Yellowstone's National Park service released a statement updating the public about the incident.
It read: "On Thursday, July 11 at about 10:40 a.m. a car with five occupants inadvertently drove off the roadway and into the Semi-Centennial Geyser thermal feature near Roaring Mountain between Mammoth Hot Springs and Norris Junction in Yellowstone National Park."
The statement added: "All five occupants exited the vehicle on their own, and each individual was transported via ambulance to a nearby hospital with non-life-threatening injuries."
The National Parks Service went on to clarify that law enforcement closed both lanes of traffic temporarily.
The vehicle was then successfully extracted from out of the pool, where it was around nine feet under.
All five occupants of the car were treated for non-life threatening injuries.
Yellowstone National Park is home to a huge number of geothermal features, and is one of the largest concentrations in the world.
The geothermal activity draws in many visitors every year, but also poses a significant safety risk if proper precautions are not taken.
And geothermal activity is far from the only danger for visitors to Yellowstone.
There's also the wildlife, with the park being home to many dangerous animals including bison, moose, cougars, coyotes, wolves, and both black bears and grizzly bears.
UNILAD has contacted the National Park Service for updates on the investigation.