The SUV they were in crashed into a hot, acidic thermal feature in Yellowstone National Park last week. Five people were taken to the hospital for treatment.
Authorities from the park said in a news release that the car got stuck off the road around 10:40 a.m. and became fully buried in 9 feet of water inside the inactive Semi-Centennial Geyser thermal feature.
All five people inside were able to get out on their own, and they were taken to a nearby hospital with injuries that were not life-threatening. To get rid of the car, the road was stopped for about two hours on Friday.
The water at the top of the thermal feature, which is between Mammoth Hot Springs and Norris Junction, is about 105 degrees F. Hot tubs, on the other hand, should be kept at 104 degrees or lower to avoid heat stroke.
More details, like what caused the crash and how the people were doing, were not available right away. On Monday, a parks official told HuffPost that the incident is still being looked into and that they could not give any more information.
When it erupted for the first time in 1922, the Semi-Centennial Geyser was briefly called the biggest geyser in the world. According to a National Parks Association report from the time, it sprayed water 300 feet into the air from an underground hot spring.
There are many hot springs in Yellowstone. Some are warmer than others, making them more dangerous to use.
A 70-year-old man’s foot was found swimming in a hot spring at the park that was about 140 degrees. It is thought that he fell in and died.
Another guy from Oregon, 23 years old, died in 2016 after slipping and falling into a hot spring while looking for a warm body of water to soak in.
It was said that by the time responders got to him, his body had already broken down in the water.