Geyser temporarily offline
As of press time, the geyser was reported to still be turned off.
City Services Director Justin Hansen reported at last week’s city council meeting that the city’s famous “captive geyser” has been temporarily shut down due to issues with the equipment that is used to regulate and operate the fountain. “You can’t just go to the geyser store and buy one. The guy that built it pieced it together,” Hansen informed members of the City Council. There are very few geysers of similar types anywhere in the world, let alone anywhere nearby with spare parts or expertise.
“The concept is simple, we need a valve and a pump and a timer. But it runs off of 1800 psi, and it will take some doing. As of now we’re closed down.” While Hansen did not provide the council with a timeline to bring the geyser back online again, he expressed confidence that the issue could be resolved. As he noted, though, the timing was not ideal, as the winter weather makes all kinds of repairs more difficult.
The geyser is one of the main draws for tourism to the city, and is often a stop off spot for tour busses and drivers heading between the national parks to the north and other locations. Winter is a less busy season for visits, but the geyser does see sightseers on a year round basis. Updates will be given as available.
