All Yellowstone National Park (Wyoming) entrances are temporarily closed because of heavy flooding, rockslides, and extremely hazardous conditions.
According to a press release, visitors are advised to stay updated about road and weather conditions.
Effective immediately, no inbound visitor traffic will be allowed into the park until conditions stabilize and the park can assess damage to roads, bridges, and other facilities. This includes visitors with lodging and camping reservations.
Closed entrances include the North, Northeast, West, South, and East entrances.
Power is out in multiple areas in the park and a lot of park roads could be closed for a long time.
Initial assessments indicate that several parts of the roads in the park have been either washed out or covered in mud or rocks, and multiple bridges may be affected.
Numerous roads in the southern portion of the park are also on the verge of being flooded, further restricting access.
With more rainfall forecasted, the park doesn’t want to see massive numbers of day-use guests trapped inside the park.
Strains in wastewater and water treatment facilities could become a factor, and the park is taking precautions to ensure facilities are not failing.
The National Park Service, surrounding counties, and the states of Montana and Wyoming will work with the gateway communities to evaluate flooding impacts and support residents.
Rainfall is expected to continue for the next several days. Flood levels measured on the Yellowstone River are beyond record levels.
“Due to record flooding events in the park and more precipitation in the forecast, we have made the decision to close Yellowstone to all inbound visitation,” said superintendent Cam Sholly.
“Our first priority has been to evacuate the northern section of the park where we have multiple road and bridge failures, mudslides and other issues. The community of Gardiner is currently isolated, and we are working with the county and State of Montana to provide necessary support to residents, who are currently without water and power in some areas. Due to predictions of higher flood levels in areas of the park’s southern loop, in addition to concerns with water and wastewater systems, we will begin to move visitors in the southern loop out of the park later today in coordination with our in-park business partners,” Sholly added.
Sholly said that they will not know the timing of the park’s reopening until flood waters subside and they’re able to assess the damage throughout the park.
Sholly said it is likely that the northern loop will be closed for a substantial amount of time.
To receive Yellowstone road alerts on your mobile phone, text “82190” to 888-777 (an automatic text reply will confirm receipt and provide instructions).
Call (307) 344-2117 for a recorded message.
For more information, visit https://www.nps.gov/yell/index.htm.