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Hiker runs out of water, dies in scorching heat near Utah state park, authorities say
Hurricane, Utah — A 56-year-old woman died while hiking near a state park in southwestern Utah over the weekend after running out of water on a sweltering day, police said.
Emergency crews responded near Quail Creek State Park on Sunday to a report of a hiker “in distress due to not having enough water and the temperature being 106 degrees,” the Hurricane City Police Department said in a statement.
She was unresponsive when rescuers found her and life-saving measures weren’t successful, police said. Her name and hometown haven’t been released.
The woman’s death is one of several believed to be heat-related in the western United States over the past several weeks.
Three hikers died in state and national parks in Utah over the previous weekend, including a father and daughter from Wisconsin who got lost on a strenuous hike in Canyonlands National Park in triple-digit temperatures. A 30-year-old woman died in Snow Canyon State Park while two others were suffering from heat exhaustion.
Three hikers died in recent weeks at Grand Canyon National Park in Arizona, where summer temperatures on exposed parts of the trails can exceed 120 degrees.
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Yellowstone hiker burned when she falls into scalding water near Old Faithful, park officials say
Yellowstone National Park, Wyo. — A New Hampshire woman suffered severe burns on her leg after hiking off-trail in Yellowstone National Park and falling into scalding water in a thermal area near the Old Faithful geyser, park officials said.
The 60-year-old woman from Windsor, New Hampshire, along with her husband and their leashed dog were walking off a designated trail near the Mallard Lake Trailhead on Monday afternoon when she broke through a thin crust over the water and suffered second- and third-degree burns to her lower leg, park officials said. Her husband and the dog weren’t injured.
The woman was flown to Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center in Idaho Falls, Idaho for treatment.
National Park Service / Jacob W. Frank
Park visitors are reminded to stay on boardwalks and trails in hydrothermal areas and exercise extreme caution. The ground in those areas is fragile and thin and there’s scalding water just below the surface, park officials said.
Pets are allowed in limited, developed areas of Yellowstone park but are prohibited on boardwalks, hiking trails, in the backcountry and in thermal areas.
The incident is under investigation. The woman’s name wasn’t made public.
This is the first known thermal injury in Yellowstone in 2024, park officials said in a statement. The park had recorded 3.5 million visitors through August this year.
Hot springs have injured and killed more people in Yellowstone National Park than any other natural feature, the National Park Service said. At least 22 people have died from hot spring-related injuries in and around the 3,471-square-mile national park since 1890, park officials have said.