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Woman sentenced to 7 days jail, $2000+ fine and 2-year ban for walking on Yellowstone thermal pool

Aug 30, 2021 by Alex Baker Leave a Comment

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A 26-year-old woman from Connecticut, USA has received a sentence of 7 days in jail for leaving the protective boardwalk in Yellowstone National Park. Madeline S. Casey was visiting the Wyoming based National Park in July when she was caught on video stepping off the covered path onto the fragile crust and approaching a thermal pool. Not only did she end up with a jail sentence, but she also has to pay over $2000 in fines and is banned from visiting the park for 2 years.

It may seem a little extreme, however, signs throughout the park clearly show that you must not leave the path for your own safety and environmental reasons. The park website states that the delicate crust and local ecosystem can be completely destroyed by nothing more than a footprint, and then of course there is a risk of extreme injury and death, with the danger areas changing frequently.

“In thermal areas, the ground may be only a thin crust above boiling hot springs, and there is no way to guess where a safe path is. New hazards can bubble up overnight, and pools are acidic enough to burn through boots, so you must stay in designated walking areas.” YellowstoneParkNet.com

According to the book ‘Death in Yellowstone’ by Lee H. Whittlesey, there are numerous ways to come to a sticky end in the world’s oldest National park, from bison goring to cowboy shootouts, poisonous gases and wagon accidents. In the park’s history at least 20 people have been killed by falling into thermal pools (that we know of). In comparison, only 8 have died from bear attacks. Just last year one young man left the boardwalk looking for a hot pool to soak in and slipped into a boiling acidic bath. Sadly no remains of note were found of him afterwards, his body dissolving in the acid completely. 

Now admittedly we can only speculate as to the reason the Connecticut woman left the path, it wasn’t necessarily for a photograph. However, with the prevalence of social media people putting themselves in danger for a photograph has become more of an issue. Just a couple of years ago DIYPhotography reported on similar news here in Yellowstone and of people plunging to their deaths for selfies like here.

So please, whenever you are out and about enjoying nature with your camera follow the rules. They aren’t there to be killjoys, they are there to protect the landscape and wildlife, and to protect us from our own stupidity. A 7-day jail sentence seems light compared with the prospect of falling in acid – just imagine what it would do to your camera equipment!

[Via CNN]

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Filed Under: news Tagged With: arrest, Dangerous selfies, Safety, yellowstone national park

About Alex Baker

Alex Baker is a portrait and lifestyle driven photographer based in Valencia, Spain. She works on a range of projects from commercial to fine art and has had work featured in publications such as The Daily Mail, Conde Nast Traveller and El Mundo, and has exhibited work across Europe

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Alex Baker is a portrait and lifestyle driven photographer based in Valencia, Spain. She works on a range of projects from commercial to fine art and has had work featured in publications such as The Daily Mail, Conde Nast Traveller and El Mundo, and has exhibited work across Europe

Dave Williams is an accomplished travel photographer, writer, and best-selling author from the UK. He is also a photography educator and published Aurora expert. Dave has traveled extensively in recent years, capturing stunning images from around the world in a modified van. His work has been featured in various publications and he has worked with notable brands such as Skoda, EE, Boeing, Huawei, Microsoft, BMW, Conde Nast, Electronic Arts, Discovery, BBC, The Guardian, ESPN, NBC, and many others.

John Aldred is a photographer with over 20 years of experience in the portrait and commercial worlds. He is based in Scotland and has been an early adopter - and occasional beta tester - of almost every digital imaging technology in that time. As well as his creative visual work, John uses 3D printing, electronics and programming to create his own photography and filmmaking tools and consults for a number of brands across the industry.

Dunja Djudjic is a multi-talented artist based in Novi Sad, Serbia. With 15 years of experience as a photographer, she specializes in capturing the beauty of nature, travel, and fine art. In addition to her photography, Dunja also expresses her creativity through writing, embroidery, and jewelry making.

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