Woman's beach walk turns into quicksand nightmare: 'I just went down'
The Kiwi was walking along a beach when all of a sudden she found herself in a bit of a pickle.
What do you do when you’re walking along a beach, enjoying the view, when all of a sudden you begin sinking into the sand?
A woman taking a stroll on beach in Auckland, New Zealand, recently found herself asking that exact question after she stepped straight into a hidden danger lurking in the sand.
"Just going for a walk at the beach and all of a sudden..." she posted alongside a video, sharing an image of her legs completely covered in wet sand with the caption: "Just crawled out of quicksand".
"These are my first two footsteps, and then I just went down," she can be heard saying in the clip, later posted to TikTok.
The hundreds of thousands of people who have watched it since it was posted over the weekend expressed absolute horror that quicksand is not something made up by Hollywood movies and demanded more information on where she was, and how she removed herself.
Woman had to lie on stomach to get out
The Kiwi had been walking along Milford Beach on Auckland's North Shore when she sunk into the ground, with sand consuming her all the way up to her thighs "immediately". "I just went down," she responded to one of her followers.
To get out, the lone woman explained she had to lie on her stomach and rolled, then clawed her way out of the sandy quagmire — a method that is, somewhat surprisingly, backed by science.
What is the safest way to escape quicksand?
You cannot easily pull someone straight out of quicksand, instead, a person stuck is meant to rotate their legs in "slow, small movements" which will help reintroduce water between the sand and the legs, Australian Geographic reports.
Once loosened by the water, a person can then slowly lift their legs back up to the surface and gently paddle or '"swim" out as they float along the surface.
Do you have a story about your own wild beach experience? Contact reporter Laura Koefoed at laura.koefoed@yahooinc.com
Turns out it's unlikely you will die if you stumble into quicksand
Unlike what Hollywood movies will have you believe, it's actually difficult to die in quicksand.
Quicksand is a mixture of fine sand, clay and water that appears solid but acts as a liquid under a certain amount of pressure. According to the Australian Academy of Science, for us to sink our body would need to have a higher density than the quicksand itself — which it does not. The density of quicksand is about 2kg/L and the density of our bodies is about 0.9kg/L for tissue and 1.1kg/L for our bones, which is similar to that of water (1kg/L).
Instead of sinking, at the very least, everything above our torso will float on the surface. This does not mean a person is out of danger however, as incoming tides can drown a person immobilised, so it is best to get out of potential danger as quickly as possible.
Where is quicksand found?
Quicksand can be found in many places across Australia and New Zealand, it just needs the right conditions. It is primarily found where creeks and rivers flow into the sea, on the beach at low tide, along riverbanks, or in rivers with sandy bottoms.
The New Zealander in this incident reported the location to council authorities but it's important to note that this exact spot will unlikely have quicksand forever as it can come and go depending on the tide and other factors.
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