Are Yellowstone’s devastating floods scaring off tourists? Here’s what the numbers say
The number of visitors at Yellowstone National Park is down from previous years after devastating floods caused the national park’s temporary closure earlier in 2022, according to park officials.
With 567,587 recreation visits in September, the park had a 36% decrease in visits compared with September 2021, when there were 882,078 visits, and an 18% decrease compared with September 2019, when there were 693,118 visits, according to data released from the National Park Service on Monday, Oct. 17.
“So far in 2022, the park has hosted 3,014,569 recreation visits, down 32% from 2021 at the same time,” the release said.
Data from National Park Service
All entrances to Yellowstone National Park were closed from June 13 through June 21 after “unprecedented amounts of rainfall caused substantial flooding, rockslides, and mudslides,” the National Park Service said.
“Historic water levels caused severe damage to roads, water and wastewater systems, power lines, and other critical park infrastructure,” according to park officials.
One June 22, three entrances reopened, the park service said, and most recently, the Northeast Entrance Road reopened on Oct. 15, marking the opening of “99% of the park’s roads.”
The recent dip in visitors follows a record-breaking year for Yellowstone National Park, McClatchy News previously reported. Last year was the busiest on record for the park, with more than 4.86 million visitors.
This story was originally published October 17, 2022 at 6:47 PM with the headline "Are Yellowstone’s devastating floods scaring off tourists? Here’s what the numbers say."
