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A group of hikers encountering quicksand on the banks of the Paria River, Utah Quicksand warning sign near Lower King Bridge, Western Australia. Quicksand is a shear thinning non-Newtonian fluid: when undisturbed, it often appears to be solid ("gel" form), but a less than 1% change in the stress on the quicksand will cause a sudden decrease in its viscosity ("sol" form).
Quicksand forms when water saturates an area of loose sand, and the sand is agitated. When the water trapped in the batch of sand cannot escape, it creates liquefied soil that can no longer resist force. Quicksand can be formed by standing or (upwards) flowing underground water (as from an underground spring), or by earthquakes.
Hazard Consequences Cause Avoidance and prevention Any liquid environment. Asphyxia by drowning.; Near drowning is the survival of a drowning event involving unconsciousness or water inhalation and can lead to serious secondary complications, including death, after the event.
It turns out that quicksand, known as supersaturated sand, is a real thing around the world, even in Maine, far from the jungle locations where Hollywood has used it to add drama by ensnaring actors.
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The main danger is being trapped and exposed to the elements in quicksands located on riverbanks, at the base of earthen dams, in abandoned rock quarries, in swamps, etc. Quicksand does not act as in the B-movies of the 1940s or 1950s in which people get "sucked" under the surface: since quicksand is thicker than water, one can float higher in ...
A more modern view suggests that an autonomic conflict – sympathetic (due to stress) and parasympathetic (due to the diving reflex) coactivation – may be responsible for some cold water immersion deaths. Gasp reflex and uncontrollable tachypnea can severely increase the risk of water inhalation and drowning. [3] Some people are much better ...
Emilio Estevez recalled on “The Jennifer Hudson Show” that he was 14 years old when Laurence Fishburne saved him from drowning in quicksand in the Philippines. The two were in the Philippines ...