Parts of Yellowstone Temporarily Closed After Underground Explosion

Parts of Yellowstone National Park remained closed a day after a massive underground explosion of boiling water flung debris high into the air and damaged some infrastructure. 

The eruption occurred at around 10 a.m. local time in an area of the park known as Biscuit Basic, 2 miles northwest of Old Faithful. Nobody was injured in the incident, which was captured on video by some visitors. 

(Heads Up!) Biscuit Basin in Yellowstone National Park temporarily closed due to hydrothermal explosion. More info: https://t.co/tcDR8oRNSx pic.twitter.com/YP7CkwNrQR

— Yellowstone National Park (@YellowstoneNPS) July 23, 2024

In one video, people can be heard yelling “Run!” and “Holy shit” as a huge plume of steam rises into the sky and chunks of earth fell to the ground near a walking path. Photos posted by the National Park Service showed guardrails along the path completely destroyed. 

It’s unclear what led to Tuesday’s larger explosion; a joint statement from Yellowstone authorities and the U.S. Geological Survey notes that “Hydrothermal explosions occur when water suddenly flashes to steam underground, and they are relatively common in Yellowstone.” According to the USGS, large explosions of this type occur around once every 700 years in the park, with some leaving massive craters that span over 300 feet (100 meters) across. 

A day later, Biscuit Basin and its parking lot and boardwalks remained closed for safety reasons, though authorities said there doesn’t appear to be any unusual volcanic activity in the area. 

Yellowstone is known for the regular eruption of geysers such as Old Faithful, which are caused by volcanic activity that heats subterranean water, causing a buildup of steam in underground cracks. When the pressure builds past a certain point, the steam forces the water upward in a spectacular display. 

Tuesday’s explosion may be the biggest in the park since a 1989 blast at the Norris Geyser Basin’s Porkchop Geyser, or since Kevin Costner left the eponymous TV show to star in a gigantic bomb.