JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Local lifeguards and the American Lifeguard Association (AFA) warned against digging holes in loose sand after a 7-year-old girl died Tuesday in South Florida after being buried in the sand.
RELATED: Young girl killed when a hole she dug in the sand collapsed on a Florida beach, authorities said
Jax Beach lifeguards said loose sand isn’t good for digging holes because it can cave in quicker and it’s best to dig in sand that’s more compact and wet.
“It’s just horrible that they came out for a day of fun and it ended that way,” grandparents Jay and Terri Stuckey said about the girl who died on Tuesday.
According to Pompano Beach Fire Rescue, when crews arrived at the beach, they found an 8-year-old boy buried up to his chest in the sand. The 7-year-old girl was beneath him.
They dug a hole that was about six feet deep.
Both were taken to the hospital where the girl died. The boy is in stable condition.
Savanna Coker, a lieutenant with Jacksonville Beach Ocean Rescue, said it’s incredibly scarring to everyone involved.
Vierta Kerlin is also a lieutenant with Jacksonville Beach Ocean Rescue and she demonstrated what sand on the beach is good for digging holes.
“So this sand in particular right here is very loose. You can tell it’s very dry and super easy to move around. So this sand would not be a great place to dig a hole. It would be extra unstable. Considering how dry the sand is,” Kerlin said.
She said the better sand to dig holes in is closer to the ocean because it’s wet.
Kerlin gave three tips when digging holes to avoid accidents:
- Always watch your children.
- Don’t dig too deep, only dig about knee-deep.
- Don’t walk around the edges when someone else is in there because it could collapse more easily.
The lifeguards added that it’s best to cover up deep holes after you are done because it could be dangerous for someone else.
“There are issues for our operations itself the lifeguards or anyone else who has to drive on the beach like police or animal control, where the trucks could fall in a hole and it could delay a response,” Coker said.
The American Lifeguard Association said they are also pushing people to cover up their holes after digging and plan to start pushing this message more following the little girl’s death.
“Had they been in front of a lifeguard or lifeguard area an official would have seen what they were doing and stopped them from doing it,” Wyatt Werenth, a national spokesperson for the American Lifeguard Association said.
Werenth said the AFA hasn’t been pushing this in the past because it’s something that doesn’t happen often. A medical study showed about three to five children each year die from situations like this.
The local lifeguards said starting March 12, they will have more of a presence on the beach as Spring break approaches.