Woman Rushes After Dog Into Yellowstone Hot Spring

Trying to save your dog from a bad situation is noble—but, in the case of one 20-year-old woman, foolish. CNN reports the Washington state woman suffered significant thermal burns after attempting to rescue her dog from a hot spring at Yellowstone National Park on Monday. The woman and her dad had gotten out of their car to take in the sights when the dog reportedly bounded out of the car and into the Maiden's Grave Spring. KRTV reports the woman went in after it and was pulled from the spring by her dad, who drove her to West Yellowstone, where rangers provided initial care.

She suffered burns from her shoulders down and is being treated at the Burn Center at Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center. The dog was also pulled from the spring; no word on its condition. The temperature of Yellowstone's springs can reach as high as 200 degrees, and visitors are warned to steer clear of them. A news release from the National Park service advises visitors to "physically control" their pets at all times. It notes the woman is the second person to suffer a significant injury in a thermal area in 2021, with the first happening last month at Old Faithful. (A tourist who walked directly on Yellowstone's thermal features in July was sentenced to a week in jail.)