“Imagine if He Were Alone”: Frantic Beachgoers Team Up To Save Kids Stuck in Beach Sand

• Two young boys got trapped in a sand hole they had dug at a local beach after water from the waves filled it up, creating a quicksand-like situation
• Beachgoers and lifeguards rushed to help, with some throwing sand back to block the water while others tried pulling the boys out
• The dramatic rescue went viral with over 900,000 views, as South Africans discussed how wet sand can behave like quicksand

A terrifying beach incident has left South Africans stunned after two young boys became trapped in sand and needed a dramatic rescue from multiple beachgoers and lifeguards. The video, shared by Cape Town content creator @Bring Back Mzansi Now, shows the scary moment when what started as innocent beach fun turned into a dangerous situation that required urgent help.

The footage shows the two boys digging a hole in the sand at the beach, but things went wrong when waves started filling the hole with water. When their mother tried to pull one of the boys out, she couldn't move him. Other beachgoers rushed over to help, but no matter how hard they pulled, both boys remained completely stuck in the sand.

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The situation became more desperate as more people arrived to assist. Some tried pulling the boys, while others came up with the idea to throw sand back into the hole to stop more water from coming in. People started scooping water out of the hole and filling it with sand to close off the water source, but the boys were still trapped.

Eventually, lifeguards arrived on the scene to help with the rescue operation. The video shows one lifeguard dramatically taking off his shirt as if he were about to dive into the water, before getting into the sandy hole to start digging. The team worked together, digging deeply into the sand that was holding the boys down.

After what seemed like forever, two men managed to pull out the first boy. They continued digging around the second child, with a crowd of concerned onlookers gathering to see if they could help in any way. Finally, after lots of effort and teamwork, they successfully freed the second boy from the sand trap.

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SA reacts to beach rescue drama

The video went viral, getting over 900,000 views, 4,000 reactions, and more than 600 comments from South Africans who were both concerned and amused by different aspects of the rescue:

@Tarryn Bell joked:

"The way the lifeguard took off he's t-shirt as if he was jumping into water. The smart ones."

@Tasleem Daniels said darkly:

"Leave 'em there. Return at 12 midnight & you can answer the 'do ghosts really exist'-question yourself !?"

@Zizipho LashYunky MaPoky Nkele imagined the worst:

"Imagine if he was alone."

@Jeanet Mamba teased:

"Keep digging... She wanted him gone deep..."

@Balungile Cele commented:

"If digging your own grave was a person."

@Gino Manuel was unsympathetic:

"If I were the lifeguard, I wouldn't even have helped them coz who told them to dig a hole?"

@Sfiso Luyanda explained:

"Wet sand behaves almost like quicksand. The pressure of the surrounding sand and water creates suction around the feet and legs."

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What is quicksand

According to DamnInteresting, the boys experienced something similar to traditional quicksand, which happens when water seeps into sand and creates a suspension where sand particles float within the water. This reduces friction between the grains of sand, making it unable to support weight properly.

Content creator @Bring Back Mzansi Now captured how, when limbs are moved around under the surface, the movement creates a vacuum pressure that makes it extremely difficult to pull free. The same vacuum effect is what causes mud to pull shoes off feet, and in this case, it trapped the boys in the wet sand hole they had dug.

Watch the Facebook clip below:

Other dramatic rescue stories in SA

• Briefly News recently reported on a dramatic six-hour rescue mission at Phelwana Game Reserve in Limpopo, but what the giraffe ended up trapped in left everyone questioning how it even happened.
• A troubling video showed a young boy in South Africa handling a snake in a risky way, but what wildlife experts warned about his actions had parents across the country worried.
• A group of Joburg men worked together to rescue a child from a burning building, but the method they used to reach the trapped child on the balcony had people holding their breath.

Source: Briefly News