Yellowstone National Park recently announced that one of its tourists was sentenced to a week in jail after illegally entering a “hazardous” geothermal area.
The national park, which is primarily located in Wyoming, shared a press release from the Department of Justice (DOJ) about the ruling on June 13. Viktor Pyshniuk, a resident of Lynwood, Washington, received a seven-day jail sentence for the trespassing incident.
Authorities say the 21-year-old man wandered away from the boardwalk area at Steamboat Geyser in Yellowstone's Norris Geyser Basin during his visit. According to the Department of Justice, Steamboat Geyser is the tallest active geyser in the world and is “the most dangerous” in the world.
“It has erratic and unpredictable eruptions that can reach between six and 300 feet high,” officials said.
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Lynwood, Washington resident Viktor Pyshniuk, far left, was photographed trespassing near a Yellowstone National Park geyser. (Yellowstone National Park)
According to the Department of Justice, a National Park Service (NPS) employee reported seeing someone “walking along the boardwalk” near the geyser. Pyshniuk reportedly told the NPS officer that she was trying to take photographs of the hot springs.
“The employee had taken a photo of the defendant who had clearly crossed the fence and was walking uphill between 15 and 20 feet from Steamboat Geyser's steam vent,” the Justice Department explained. “When contacted, Pyshniuk told the officer that he had left the boardwalk to take photographs.”
“While speaking with Pyshniuk, the officer showed him the signs posted throughout the area indicating that it is illegal to leave the boardwalk and explained that walking in a thermal zone is very dangerous due to the possible weak layer of the soil, the geothermal characteristics of clay pots, steam and water, and all the other dangers associated with walking in an unpredictable, heated geothermal area.”
In addition to his prison sentence, Pyshniuk was also ordered to pay $1,550 in fines and given two years of unsupervised release. The man is also banned from Yellowstone National Park for two years.
Viktor Pyshniuk, 21, has been found guilty of “geothermal trespass” in Yellowstone National Park. (iStock)
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Judge Stephanie A. Hambrick designed the sentence to “deter [Pyshniuk]specifically, but also the exit of the public from the boardwalk in this area.”
“She expressed concern that the defendant's actions were seen by people around him and they might have thought it was okay to do the same thing,” the Justice Department said. “And if every visitor to [Yellowstone] “If I disobeyed the rules, the park would be destroyed and no one would be able to enjoy it.”
Acting U.S. Attorney Eric Heimann said in a statement that encroaching on Yellowstone's thermal areas is “dangerous and harms natural resources.”
Hundreds of visitors watch as Old Faithful comes to life in the Upper Geyser Basin of Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming on September 18, 2022. (George Rose/Getty Images)
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“In cases like this, where we have strong evidence showing that a person intentionally ignored signs and entered a closed thermal area, federal prosecutors will seek significant penalties, including jail time,” Heimann said.
