A human foot was discovered in the Abyss Pool in Yellowstone National Park (Picture: Getty)
Authorities have identified the owner of a human foot discovered in a Yellowstone National Park geyser pool in August.
The foot belonged to Il Hun Ro, a 70-year-old man from Los Angeles, California, the park stated on Thursday. A full report is expected to be released in the upcoming weeks.
The identification was made using DNA analysis. No other parts of his body have been recovered.
On August 11, a park employee found ‘part of a foot in a shoe’ floating in the Abyss Pool, a portion of the West Thumb Geyser Basin.
Temperatures in Yellowstone geyser pools can reach as high as 140 degrees Fahrenheit (Picture: Getty Images)
After an initial investigation, Yellowstone law enforcement said they believed there was ‘an unwitnessed incident involving one individual’ around July 31 and suspected no foul play.
The West Thumb Geyser was temporarily closed for the investigation, but it has since been reopened.
The Abyss Pool is one of the deepest basins in the park, and water temperatures can reach as high as 140 degrees Fahrenheit. The water in pools like this can often be dangerously acidic.
At least 22 people have died at Yellowstone hot springs since the park was opened in 1890.
The most recent death occurred in 2016, when Colin Nathaniel Scott left a designated walkway and slipped into a hot pool at Norris Geyser Basin.
Park rangers attempted to recover the 23-year-old’s body, but no remains could be found in the acidic water.
‘This tragic event must remind all of us to follow the regulations and stay on boardwalks when visiting Yellowstone’s geyser basins,’ then-Yellowstone Superintendent Dan Wenk said.
The park advises visitors to avoid touching, swimming, or soaking in any thermal features or runoff, and to avoid bringing any pets to these areas.
Many people are seriously injured each year from thermal water, including a woman who attempted to rescue her dog from a hot spring in October, 2021. The woman survived with serious burns, but the dog succumbed to its injuries.
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No other parts of his body have been recovered.
