Overview

• On July 28 a 17-year-old hiker in Yellowstone National Park broke through the thin thermal crust near Lone Star Geyser and suffered burns to his foot and ankle.
• Emergency medical staff treated the teenager on site before transporting him to a hospital for further care.
• The National Park Service opened an investigation into the incident and reiterated that visitors must stay on boardwalks and marked trails and avoid swimming or soaking in hot springs.
• This incident marks Yellowstone’s first reported thermal injury of 2025, following a September 2024 accident in which a 60-year-old woman off-trail suffered second- and third-degree burns.
• Yellowstone’s hydrothermal areas contain scalding water beneath fragile crust and have caused more than 20 fatalities among visitors straying from designated paths.