.webp)
A man died while looking for somewhere to 'hot pot' in Yellowstone National Park.
It might be a place of immense natural beauty, but Yellowstone National Park is also very dangerous if you don't take proper precautions.
In particular, the park's hot springs can be extremely dangerous.
Advert
This perhaps comes as no surprise given that one of the largest magma chambers in the world is located underneath the national park.
The magma heats up the water resulting in some spectacular geographical features.
They might seem inviting as a way to bathe in the hot volcanic waters, but you should never, ever do this.
Swimming or bathing in the hot springs in Yellowstone is fatal, as 23-year-old Colin Scott tragically found.
Colin had reportedly been looking for a location in which he could 'hot pot' - taking a plunge into a hot spring.
Advert
But while testing the temperature of water with his finger, he slipped and fell in.
Colin was found dead in the hot spring later that day, with his body floating in the water.
At the time rescue officials could not get to Colin's body to recover it, before the arrival of a thunderstorm forced them to retreat and take shelter.
The next day the officials returned to the hot spring to recover Colin's body.
Advert
However, when they arrived at the spring they found there was nothing left of the body, with just his wallet and flip flops remaining.
While it's plausible that an animal such as a wolf may have taken the body, rangers were convinced that it was something even more alarming.
So what does he think happened to the body?
Deputy Chief Ranger Lorant Veress noted in his report of the horrifying incident: "In a very short order, there was a significant amount of dissolving."
Advert
At the surface the geothermal pools, geysers, and ponds in Yellowstone average a temperature of around 199F (93C).
When you descend further down into the water, the temperature only gets hotter.
There aren't many living things which are able to survive the near-boiling temperature of the waters.
One group of single-celled organisms called archaea has just about managed to survive there, but unless you're a microscopic life form you should stand well clear of the pools.
Advert
According to Outforia, some 52 people have died in Yellowstone since 2010, though this is far fewer compared to the Great Smoky Mountains in Tennessee, where 92 died.
Topics: News, World News, US News, Environment