ADVERTISEMENT

OT: Teen killed in beach collapse in Toms River

Damn shame.

No one there to warn them of such danger in digging such a hole? Why go so deep.. over their heads? The thoughts of the one who died must have been awful.. couldn't breathe most likely.. one breath out and lungs compress.. awful way to go.... one who survived and their whole family will have nightmares for a long time.

Damn shame.
 
I know the Asbury Park Beach Patrol doesn't allow you to dig holes in the sand, and especially don't allow you to bury people in the sand.

I think a year or two ago, Belmar had to rescue someone from a collapsed sand hole.
 
To dig a hole that deep is a ton of work. Super scary and awful for that family. I’ve dug some decent holes in my day. Only once a huge one with friends that was probably close to head high but it was super wide so not some death trap and there were like 20 of us around.
 
it is just plain stupid......i fell sorry for them but if you have ever seen any utility work being done they always put up shoring. you cannot just dig and think it will not collapse in on you.
 
  • Like
Reactions: RUaMoose
Google William Flowers Monmouth College. If you live on the shore you know this can happen.
 
  • Sad
Reactions: redking
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: MrsScrew
It happens once in a while. Just doesn't result in death.

This is the 2nd kid to die in a similar fashion in 2 days. The other was in Utah.

There have been a few posts on social media on giant sand holes and how cool they can be. Unfortunately they leave out the part of how they can collapse. Social media really knows how to spread bad ideas fast.
 
  • Like
Reactions: knightfan7
Sand (dry or wet) will cave in easier than most other soil types because it's cohesionless so the particles don't adhere that well to each other. So you can't assume any packed sand will hold in place for long.

Not the case here obviously but OSHA rules for excavation and trenching require sloping back, benching, or shoring with a trench box for certain depths or greater regardless of the soil type but a no-brainer for sandy material since it can cave or slide in easily and bury a worker quickly, not to mention keep the work area clear to perform the necessary work. The weight is much more than most folks realize.
 
Sand holes collapse, it’s sand. It has NOTHING to do with beach replenishment. We dig sand holes and make sand forts all the time but because of possible collapse they are never more than waist deep.

PS - I thought this was common knowledge. Some beaches even have signs saying don’t dig sand holes.
 
I know this all too well. This happened do an extended family member about 17 years ago on Cape Cod. The boy was about 10 years old but unfortunately didnt survive.
 
B3YETG9CEAE8Igt

Maybe they were trying to reproduce this for insta... (from FRIENDS)
 
it is just plain stupid......i fell sorry for them but if you have ever seen any utility work being done they always put up shoring. you cannot just dig and think it will not collapse in on you.
The story did note it was teenagers. Kids aren't looking at safety measures taken on a utility companies job site.
 
I remember the Monmouth College one and some others from when I was a little kid at the Peninsula House Beach Club where we were members.

My Parents and the other parents in our circle of friends used to put the fear of God with what could happen to us.

I had a little flash back to those stories watching the news last night.
 
Last edited:
it is just plain stupid......i fell sorry for them but if you have ever seen any utility work being done they always put up shoring. you cannot just dig and think it will not collapse in on you.
Dont think a minor and an 18 yr old are going around surveying how construction or utility workers are shoring up digs. With that said common sense must kick in as I've told my girls they cannot do that for that reason when we are at beach
 
it is just plain stupid......i fell sorry for them but if you have ever seen any utility work being done they always put up shoring. you cannot just dig and think it will not collapse in on you.
They were kids, not OSHA employees.
 
understand that but when I was a kid my parents beat into my head that you do not dig holes like that in the sand. Maybe they were never told.........
I wasn’t ever told that and I imagine a lot weren’t either. I remember burying my Dad in the sand. Doesn’t make them stupid - it’s a tragedy, and an accident, and your reaction “it’s just plain stupid” is both inaccurate and cold.
 
I never knew this was a thing. Summers in Lavalette were spent with my father “digging us to China”…. I remember huge holes that the two of us could hang in.
Obviously all accidents that involve the loss of a young person are tragic, but this is one of those times I just say “Why God?”
 
it is just plain stupid......i fell sorry for them but if you have ever seen any utility work being done they always put up shoring. you cannot just dig and think it will not collapse in on you.
sometimes teenagers don't make the smartest choices when it comes to thinking something will be fun.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Jm0513
A few years back we had renters from central PA. staying across the street from us on LBI. They had never been on an ocean beach before. We had been talking to them on their first day and filling them in on things like rip currents etc. Very nice people who were excited about being on LBI. Their kids dug 2 holes and attempted to connect them with a tunnel. Absolute tragedy.
 
Last edited:
  • Wow
Reactions: newell138
sometimes? Agree with most on here, as a kid, no one ever told us, hey thats dangerous!
Times have changed. As kids, we climbed trees, went on roofs of houses, played with firecrackers/M-80s, rode our bikes in the dark without lights, went to places like Action Park, etc., without parents stopping us or warning us of the dangers. Many parents now wrap their kids in bubble wrap to protect them, and they are so loaded up with activities and structured play dates, kids have no time for free range fun and high jinks.
 
Last edited:
Times have changed. As kids, we climbed trees, went on roofs of houses, played with firecrackers/M-80s, rode our bikes in the dark without lights, went to places like Action Park, etc., without parents stopping us or warning us of the dangers. Many parents now wrap their kids in bubble wrap to protect them, and they are so loaded up with activities and structured play dates, kids have no time for free range fun and high jinks.
very true. When i think of the things we did as kids its amazing no one died. In my neighborhood of about 20 homes there were about 65 kids within a 10 year age range. Lots of hi-jinx for sure
 
I must admit no one ever told me about digging holes in the sand and we dug some whoppers. Just like no one told me not to climb trees or was that? That I just didn't listen to them tell me, Hmmm. Anyway construction sites were the best play grounds growing up as kids. I think there was something about them too, don't care didn't listen.

It's amazing I lived this long, from falling out of trees to nails threw my foot and my Mom getting questioned by my Grammar school teacher and Principle about possible abuse. That was a hoot, as my Mom sat back in glee, now son, explain to your teacher how you got that bruise, now that scar, now that broken arm, now that cut. My older brother came up in a lot of those answers.
 
Last edited:
very true. When i think of the things we did as kids its amazing no one died. In my neighborhood of about 20 homes there were about 65 kids within a 10 year age range. Lots of hi-jinx for sure
some actually did, hence why the overcompensation after the news reports it. When I was a kid, I walked home from school by myself starting around 4th grade. Then there were all these kidnappings in the news, and the state started making stricter rules for young kids.
 
In this case, you inferred it from what he stated. He may have implied it but his statement does not appear to be an inference.

Thanks, I didn't mean to imply it either. When I wrote that there wasn't much information out and I mentioned it as a possibility. I didn't bother responding to him because I have better things to do than respond to aggressive attacks from clowns with bad reading comprehension.

Sinkholes, washouts and other issues are common after beach replenishment. I got stuck in a sinkhole (it was like quicksand) above my knee once with an incoming tide. Took about 5 min but I got out. It was at daybreak and nobody else was around. Wasn't fun.
 
  • Like
Reactions: newell138
it is just plain stupid......i fell sorry for them but if you have ever seen any utility work being done they always put up shoring. you cannot just dig and think it will not collapse in on you.
Strange reaction to a kid dying. One might call your comment stupid based on the kid having family and friends who are differing right now.
 
  • Like
Reactions: S.W.A.I.N
ADVERTISEMENT

Latest posts

ADVERTISEMENT