When people hear the word quicksand they normally picture some kind of death trap that will suck you under and drown you, but the reality is that quicksand isn’t anywhere near as dangerous as people think.
Having said that it is still responsible for the deaths of a good number of people, but the vast majority of these didn’t involve drowning in the sand itself. The reason its so hard to drown after getting trapped is because quicksand is denser than the human body, which means that the deepest you can possibly sink is normally little past your waist.
Most people who have been killed by quicksand have died from some other knock on effect from getting trapped, such as exposure or being trapped in a tidal area, so you can forget the movie effects of being sucked down into a bottomless pit that can swallow a person in seconds.
What is Quicksand
It is simply sand, clay or silt that has been saturated by water, causing it to become more of a liquid than a solid. The sand becomes unstable due to the water content and so does not pack down when weight is applied like normal sand, but instead moves round the object swallowing it up.
How is quicksand formed?
It is formed when water is trapped within a certain area within the right kind of material (sand, clay etc), if the water within the area cannot escape it effectively forms an underground pond filled with sand, and since the water is heavier than the sand, it often looks like normal dry sand on the surface.
You can actually create your own quicksand on the beach. All you need to do is find a flat area of sand with a good amount of surface water on top, then simply jog up and down for a couple of minutes to mix the water and sand together. If you stand on the spot you’ve jogged on and wiggle your feet around you’ll start to sink. This is another way quicksand is formed, through the sudden agitation of the ground when waters present, but this normally doesn’t have the opportunity to form this way in nature, unless perhaps by wild animals in the area or a small earthquake if you happen to be in the right area of the world.
How deep is quicksand?
Fortunately its never normally more than 3 to 4 feet deep, and since it’s denser than people are you should float after sinking a certain depth and wont reach the bottom of it anyway.
What is dry quicksand?
This only happens in desert areas and is caused by air reaching the lower levels of the sand which turns it into more of a liquid. It’s not something you’d find though, as the conditions to create it in nature are very specific and are rarely formed.
Dry quicksand is almost impossible to escape as its not the same thing as what is defined by “quicksand”. You can do a small experiment at home to see how deadly this kind of sand is, and all you need is a tall glass, a drinking straw and some sand.
Put a straw into the glass so its touching the bottom, and fill the whole thing up with sand. Now place some kind of small object, like a few coins perhaps on top of the sand and of course it sits in place as expected. Now slowly blow air down the straw and watch how the sand behaves as a liquid, with the coins falling straight down to the bottom.
Where can you find quicksand?
It can be found in any area were the conditions are met, so anything close to a permanent water source. The banks of rivers and lakes, marshes and especially beach’s can all form quicksand. The most dangerous type being the mud version you find along side river banks, as this is considerably thicker and much harder to escape from.
How do you escape from quicksand?
Ah the big question, and fortunately the answer is rather simple so here’s a quick list of things to do in the event of you getting stuck.
1) Don’t panic
Thrashing around wildly will only cause you to sink faster and could cause you to go deeper than you otherwise would have, so don’t panic and make any frantic movements.
2) Make yourself lighter
As soon as you realise your stuck, immediately take of anything heavy your carrying, such as a back pack. Also remove any kind of waist-held equipment such as tool belts as these can make you get stuck a little worse if the sands deep enough.
3) Get your wiggle on
If your stuck up to, but not over your waist you can free yourself one leg at a time. To do this put all your weight on one of your legs and start to wiggle the other one side to side while slowly pulling it up. Eventually it will come free, at which point you place your knee on the surface to create as much surface space as possible, and start to wiggle your other leg out.
4) Sacrifice your shoes
If your wearing stiffer soled footwear like walking boots, these will create much more suction under the sole and be significantly harder to get out. The goal is to allow air to reach under your feet to avoid any kind of suction effect, which can be very difficult if you have thick soled footwear. If its possible try and slip out your footwear, and if it isn’t possible as you wiggle your legs up, angle your feet steeply from side to side to try and force some air under them.
5) Above waist quicksand
If your unlucky enough to get trapped in quicksand that comes up to your chest, then the first thing to do is remain calm and take deep breaths. Its technically impossible to sink in quicksand as its denser than people are, so the worst that can happen is you’ll get it up to your upper chest.
Place your arms out to create as much surface area as possible, and rotate your torso in circles while gently moving yourself upwards. Try to lean on the sand as you rotate and use it to gently push yourself up. The most important thing to remember is to go slow and steady, as panicking and thrashing about will only see you sink again.
It can take several hours to get out of the worst quicksand, so if you’ve been at it for half an hour and only come up a few inch’s, then stick at it. Giving up or trying something extreme wont help you.