![]() One of the rescuers who found Osmun told him he was lucky to be alive. He was not freed from the quicksand until late in the night, forcing rescuers to stay with him as temperatures plummeted and the park received another 4 inches of snow. A search-and-rescue team immediately set out to look for Osmun, whom they found several hours later. "The water was so cold I thought for sure I'd lose my leg because there was no way she was going to be able to get there fast enough to have people come get me out," Osmun told ABC News.Īfter hiking alone for hours, McNeill was able to call for help, and rangers located her close to the trailhead, according to a news release from Zion National Park that detailed the rescue. "There was a couple times I thought I might as well just turn back, and we can just be together for the last moments." Scariest thing, I didn't even know if I would be able to do that hike by myself," she told ABC News. "It was the hardest thing I've had to do. Ultimately, McNeill left Osman to go look for help, or at least for a cell signal so she could call 911. Quicksand is denser than your body is, which means you’ll mostly float on the surface. ![]() In fact, a 2005 article in the journal Nature found that it’s impossible for a human body to sink completely into quicksand. The body of Zachary Porter, 20, was recovered Monday morning. The reality is that while you can get stuck in quicksand, your whole body won’t actually sink to the bottom of it. But that doesn't mean it can't be dangerous.įor Osmun, his predicament meant he was trapped in frigid water and exposed to the elements as winter storms hit the region. The Lake Bluff man was there with friends on Sunday night when he was submerged up to his waist in the quicksand-like silt. The weather was most likely a contributing factor."ĭespite what Hollywood might have you think, a 2005 study by researchers at the University of Amsterdam showed that it is not possible for a person to sink entirely into quicksand, because they are too buoyant. "We have been unusually wet here this winter. "Quicksand is not normally a problem at Zion, but it does happen if conditions are right," said Alyssa Baltrus, a spokeswoman for the park. If something - like a limb - is submerged, it is incredibly hard to escape. If exposed to a sudden shock or stress, like the weight of a hiker, it can become unstable. Quicksand forms when water or air becomes trapped in sand.
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