Why does quicksand pull you down

But soon he was experiencing agonising chest pain and the doctor developed an asthma attack brought on by the dust. The firefighters did come up with a clever solution, though. To survive a fall into dry quicksand, you need outside help as quickly as possible, but what if you find yourself in some wet quicksand, not drowning, but stuck? You need to wiggle your leg a little in order to introduce water to the sand around your feet to liquefy the sand again. The idea is to stay calm which might be easier said than done , lean back and spread out to spread your weight more evenly and wait until you float back up to the surface.

If you liked this story, sign up for the weekly bbc. Disclaimer All content within this column is provided for general information only, and should not be treated as a substitute for the medical advice of your own doctor or any other health care professional.

The BBC is not responsible or liable for any diagnosis made by a user based on the content of this site. The BBC is not liable for the contents of any external internet sites listed, nor does it endorse any commercial product or service mentioned or advised on any of the sites. Always consult your own GP if you're in any way concerned about your health. Medical Myths Death.

Apply market research to generate audience insights. Measure content performance. Develop and improve products. List of Partners vendors. Share Flipboard Email. Anne Marie Helmenstine, Ph. Chemistry Expert. Helmenstine holds a Ph. She has taught science courses at the high school, college, and graduate levels. Facebook Facebook Twitter Twitter. Updated December 04, Key Takeaways: Quicksand Quicksand is a non-Newtonian fluid made of sand mixed with water or air.

It changes its viscosity in response to stress or vibration, allowing you to sink, but making it hard to escape.

You can only sink into quicksand up to your waist. Really, the only way to drown from the quicksand is to fall into it head first or face first. A rescuer can't simply pull a victim out of quicksand. However, a person or branch can be used to help reduce the victim's weight, making it easier to work free and float. Even though you can't sink all the way into quicksand, it's a killer.

Death can come in the form of suffocation, dehydration, hypothermia, predators, crush syndrome, or drowning from a river or incoming tide. The best way to prevent a fatality is to keep a charged cell phone with you so you can call for help. If you have to rescue yourself, wriggle your legs to make the quicksand more fluid while trying to sit back into the quicksand to increase your body's surface area.

Slowly float out. Featured Video. So head to the next page -- quick. Quicksand is an interesting natural phenomenon -- it is actually solid ground that has been liquefied by a saturation of water. The " quick " refers to how easily the sand shifts when in this semiliquid state. Quicksand is not a unique type of soil; it is usually just sand or another type of grainy soil. Quicksand is nothing more than a soupy mixture of sand and water. Quicksand is created when water saturates an area of loose sand and the ordinary sand is agitated.

When the water trapped in the batch of sand can't escape, it creates liquefied soil that can no longer support weight. There are two ways in which sand can become agitated enough to create quicksand:.

Vibration tends to enhance the quickness, so what is reasonably solid initially may become soft and then quick, according to Dr. The vibration plus the water barrier reduces the friction between the sand particles and causes the sand to behave like a liquid. To understand quicksand, you have to understand the process of liquefaction. When soil liquefies, as with quicksand, it loses strength and behaves like a viscous liquid rather than a solid, according to the Utah Geological Survey.

Liquefaction can cause buildings to sink significantly during earthquakes. While quicksand can occur in almost any location where water is present, there are certain locations where it's more prevalent.

Places where quicksand is most likely to occur include:. The next time you're at the beach , notice the difference in the sand as you stand on different parts of the beach that have varying levels of moisture. If you stand on the driest part of the beach, the sand holds you up just fine. The friction between the sand particles creates a stable surface to stand on. If you move closer to the water, you'll notice that the sand that is moderately wet is even more tightly packed than the dry sand.

Often these traps are found near the periphery or edge of natural water sources. Often the sand on top may appear solid, but with the added pressure of a footstep, the sand will mix with the water beneath it forming a thick sludge. The grainy mixture increases in viscosity as whatever is trapped in the quicksand struggles, making it extremely hard to get out of, particular if the victim is panicking and becoming exhausted.