Glenelg Beach, Adelaide: Woman sucked in by quicksand on Aussie beach
A young woman’s casual walk on a well-known Aussie beach has gone horribly wrong.
A young woman narrowly escaped a dangerous situation on a beach in Adelaide last month after she became stuck in a narrow pit of quicksand.
While walking along Glenelg Beach on May 19, Adelaide woman Madz June became stuck in a pit of sand after she hopped down from a rocky outcrop.
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Speaking to various media outlets on Monday, Ms June said she fell “straight through the sand” as she hopped down from the rocks, and initially found the situation “hilarious”.
“I asked my friend to Google what to do, and it said to try and move my foot around … it wouldn’t budge,” she said.
“My foot was really trapped, it actually felt like it was in a vacuum-sealed bag.”
After about 15 minutes of struggling, Ms June realised the sand was coming up to her waist and she wasn’t going to get out by herself.
Luckily, her friend was able to phone emergency services and within an hour she was extracted from the sludge.
“My main concern was if it was an elderly person or a young child that had been in that situation, they may not have been able to get themselves out,” she said.
“Gratefully, I had a friend and I had a phone with me so I was able to get out of the situation, whereas other people may not be in such good luck.”
Ms June isn’t the only person who encountered quicksand on Glenelg Beach.
On Sunday, local wellness influencer and photographer Sarah Darbyshire was walking her dog Bean when she found herself embedded in the sludge.
“Bean and I went for a beach walk and somehow ended up in sinking sand,” Ms Darbyshire wrote on her Instagram page.
“Bean almost disappeared first, so I rescued him, launched him onto solid ground, threw the poo bag, shoved my phone in my pocket and then realised I was sinking too.
“Somehow, my pure adrenaline kicked in and I managed to drag myself out.”
Holdfast Bay Council has since installed new warning signs along the shoreline so people are aware of the dangers.
The South Australian Department of Environment and Water administers most Adelaide beaches, and said public safety signage warning of “soft sand” had been erected on April 27 after new sand was dropped at Glenelg Beach North.
“As occurs every year, natural beach sand is collected from where it accumulates at West Beach Harbour and placed at Glenelg North to raise beach levels and provide vital protection for coastal infrastructure and properties from winter storms, such as those forecast for this week,” a Department spokesman said.
“This annual work is vital to protect important coastal infrastructure, including the rock walls, roads and footpaths. Public safety signage was erected at every beach access pathway from Glenelg North to West Beach Boat ramp before the work was carried out on April 27.
“That signage remains in place and the public is urged to take care during this stormy period.”
Originally published as ‘Straight through’: Woman narrowly escapes quicksand on Glenelg Beach in Adelaide
