When Jamie Acord was walking along the beach at Popham Beach State Park in Maine, she was not expecting to sink into the sand. Within seconds of sinking into the sand, she was already stuck waist-deep in it. She told WCSH that she "couldn't feel the ground with [her] feet" and "couldn't push [herself] out."
The reason Jamie sunk into the sand so quickly is because she had actually stepped on quicksand, or supersaturated sand. Experts say that those who encounter quicksand won't sink under the sand completely, but the experience can still be startling.
Jim Britt, spokesperson for the Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry, told WCSH that getting caught in supersaturated sand is "100% survivable." In Jamie's case, her husband was able to pull her out of the quicksand.
She said that the experience would probably be more alarming for those who are alone or for children, reported the Associated Press.
“A kid would be scared,” she told the wire service.
Jamie told People that she didn't know what to do because she had never experienced anything like that, even though she goes to the beach frequently. Even after her husband helped her get out, she still didn't really know what had happened. "We just assumed I'd fallen in an actual hole and there was nothing there," she told AP. "It looked just like the beach. It had filled itself right back in."
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Jim Britt told WCSH that it's possible to get out on your own if you get caught in quicksand — just "stay calm." "Lean back. Find your way back," he told the outlet.
Though getting stuck in quicksand at Popham Beach State Park in Maine is pretty unexpected, the Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry explained that climate change contributed to the softening of the sand at the park, reported AP.
