How to Survive in Quicksand
As a child, I knew two things about quicksand: it’s a dangerous danger for cartoon characters in the jungle, and that in real life it’s sticky only if you treat it like a solid body. Imagine it is water and you can swim out of it.
But it’s not always that simple. Recently, a man was trapped for 12 hours in quicksand in Zion National Park in Utah. He couldn’t get out, his girlfriend couldn’t get him out, the first park ranger to arrive couldn’t get him out, and when the ranger tried to pull the rope he said he felt like his leg was about to fall. to be ripped off. In the end, a team of park rangers were able to get him out. It was snowing most of the time he was trapped and needed to be treated for hypothermia .
What is quicksand?
Quicksand is a mixture of solid particles (such as sand) and water. When your foot pushes against it, your weight squeezes the water between the particles. This leaves you trapped in mud that seems almost solid. Watch this video where the host walks on solid ground and drowns. A few minutes later, it is surrounded by a puddle of displaced water. Plus, he’s trapped more than he expected:
What to do if you get stuck for the first time
You get stuck because you have a lot of weight (your whole body) pressing on a small footprint (your, well, footprint). Make yourself lighter by removing your backpack or any other equipment that increases your weight.
It is difficult to drown if you are in a horizontal position, so try to lie down in the mud before your feet get stuck. Or if you have something else that can distribute weight, such as hiking poles or something in the shape of a flat board, lay it on the dirt and use it as a support.
It is better to try to go backwards, lying on your back rather than on your stomach, because you are less likely to get your face covered in mud.
How to free someone who is truly trapped
If your legs get stuck, you will be at a very disadvantage. Your partner cannot simply pull you out by the rope, because air cannot enter the space that you created with your feet. Basically, you’ve created such a strong vacuum that it takes the force needed to lift the frame to pull you out.
In the video below, the Coast Guard brigade surrounds the stuck person with planks so they can kneel down and work. They then pump water into the sand around the person and scoop up the sediment.
In the video that we saw above, the presenter saves himself on his own – with difficulty – by making small movements with his legs, allowing the water to settle in the space below him.
How to avoid quicksand in the first place
Don’t underestimate quicksand. People don’t usually drown in it, but you can definitely get trapped and vulnerable to heat exhaustion, hypothermia, or other natural hazards.
Start by knowing where quicksand is likely, and be careful in swamps, tidal banks, and other swampy areas. Water rising from the ground is a clear warning sign. Tap the ground in front of you with a stick if in doubt about its strength. Quicksand will noticeably give way.
In these areas, it is especially important to follow basic rules of safety in the wild: carry your phone or radio with you whenever possible and tell someone where you are going and when you plan to return.