A 21-year-old man is facing a week in jail after approaching the "most dangerous" geyser in the world in Yellowstone National Park.
The man, Viktor Pyshniuk, from Lynwood, Washington, was apprehended by Yellowstone National Park officials after he left the boardwalk and walked within 15 to 20 feet of the Steamboat Geyser.
As noted on various signs around the area, leaving the boardwalk is against the law. Pyshniuk has now been sentenced to seven days in jail for thermal trespass, along with facing a $1,500 fine, and banned from the national park for two years.
A Yellowstone National Park law enforcement officer arrived at the scene after Pyshniuk left the boardwalk, stepped over the three-foot fence, and begun walking up the hillside toward Steamboat Geyser's steam vent, which he told the officer he had done to go and take pictures.
"While speaking with Pyshniuk, the officer showed him the signs posted throughout the area stating it is illegal to leave the boardwalk and explained that walking in a thermal area is very dangerous due to possible weak ground layer, the geothermal features of mud pots, heated steam and water, and all other dangers associated with walking in a heated, unpredictable geothermal area," the National Park Service said in a news release.
Geysers are a type of hot spring that periodically erupts, shooting water and steam into the air. Steamboat Geyser, considered to be the most dangerous in the world, holds the record for the tallest active geyser eruptions, capable of shooting 160 degrees Fahrenheit water and steam over 300 feet into the air.
The geyser's eruptions are highly irregular, with intervals ranging from days to years. After a long period of dormancy, Steamboat Geyser became notably active again in 2018. Major eruptions can last from a few minutes to over 40 minutes.
Yellowstone is home to thousands of other geothermal features, meaning that the ground in areas like the Norris Geyser Basin can be thin and fragile. Stepping on it can cause it to break, leading to serious burns or injuries from the boiling water and steam beneath the surface.
Leaving the boardwalks and designated trails is against park regulations, which are enforced to ensure both visitor safety and the protection of the park. There have been numerous incidents in Yellowstone where individuals have been seriously injured or killed after leaving the boardwalks.
The judge who sentenced Pyshniuk, Magistrate Judge Stephanie A. Hambrick, explained that the verdict was meant to deter him and others from leaving the boardwalk
"Trespassing in closed, thermal areas of Yellowstone National Park is dangerous and harms the natural resource," acting United States Attorney Eric Heimann said in the NPS statement. "In cases like this one where we have strong evidence showing a person has willfully disregarded signs and entered a closed, thermal area, federal prosecutors will seek significant penalties, including jail time."
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