A Holladay man who suffered life-threatening burns after he mistakenly jumped into a scalding thermal pool at Yellowstone National Park last summer is wholly responsible for his injuries and is therefore not entitled to compensation, the federal government maintains.
The contention is in response to Lance Buchi's lawsuit against the National Park Service and the U.S. Interior Department, which alleges the park failed to warn him and his two friends of the dangers posed by thermal pools.
Utahns Buchi and Tyler Montague, both 18 at the time, suffered burns to more than 90 percent of their bodies after the near-fatal Aug. 21, 2000, leap into a 178-degree pool. The third member of the group, 20-year-old Sara Hulphers of Oroville, Wash., died from her injuries.
The lawsuit, filed June 12, claims the agencies were negligent because they failed to close the trail leading directly to the thermal pools at night, did not warn people that trails are dangerous and did not caution people that the pools cannot be recognized at night. The agencies also misled the public by cautioning walkers to stay on the trails, according to the suit.
But the government's answer, filed Monday in U.S. District Court in Cheyenne, Wyo., denies each of Buchi's claims and argues the young man himself is to blame for the accident.
"Any injuries incurred by (Buchi) were caused by his own negligent acts and omissions, including unlawfully walking in a thermal area off any boardwalk or trail," Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas D. Roberts wrote.
Even if outside factors contributed to Buchi's injuries, Roberts argues Buchi is at least 50 percent responsible and should be restricted from collecting damages from the federal government.
The suit seeks an unspecified amount for damages to cover Buchi's medical costs, which already exceed $1 million and are expected to increase steadily throughout Buchi's life, and his emotional and psychological injuries.
Buchi's Salt Lake attorney, Robert Sharp, referred all calls for comment to Cheyenne attorney Donald Sullivan, who did not return calls by press time Thursday.
The trio of Yellowstone employees had been swimming in the Firehole River with five others and became separated from the group while walking back in the dark through the Lower Geyser Basin, the area of the park that includes Old Faithful geyser.
According to the suit, the three friends "made it a point, as they walked along in the dark, carefully to remain on the public trail." At one point, they saw what they believed to be a thin ribbon of water crossing the path and attempted to leap over it.
But instead of landing on solid ground, the three plunged into a scalding thermal pool. Buchi and Montague managed to keep their heads above water and pull themselves out of the hot pot. Hulphers, however, was unable to get out of the pool.
The young men were taken by ambulance to the West Yellowstone airport, where they were flown to Idaho Falls. From there, they were flown to University Hospital's Intermountain Burn Unit, where they remained for three months.
Liz Montague, Tyler Montague's mother, told the Deseret News in June that although recovery is slow for both men, they are getting better everyday.
A scheduling conference in the case is set for Aug. 30. Roberts anticipates a trial will last at least two weeks and could start as early as next spring.
E-mail: awelling@desnews.com