Yellowstone Park, which welcomed more than 4.8 million visitors in 2021, had been closed for several days due to severe weather.
Yellowstone National Park, one of the most famous in the United States and in the world, partially reopened on Wednesday after having to close its doors last week due to flooding and record bad weather.
From before dawn, hundreds of people in cars and motorhomes waited at park entrances, where roads and bridges were washed away by torrential rains and rapid snowmelt.
“Historical water levels”
Impressive images of sections of roads undermined by the waves had been released by the National Parks Agency (NPS) to illustrate the extent of the damage. Dozens of people isolated by the floods had to be evacuated by helicopter.
On Wednesday, the southern part of the park was opened to visitors, whose numbers were controlled by a system based on license plates, allowing entry of even numbers on even days, and odd numbers on odd days.
The northern part remains closed until further notice due to “historic water levels” which have “caused significant damage to roads, water and drainage systems, power lines and other critical infrastructure. of the park,” according to the NPS.