Overview
- The National Park Service posted a March 3 safety notice on its website and Facebook warning that quicksand may occur near shorelines and in drainages at Glen Canyon and can look firm before giving way.
- Officials highlight indicators to watch for, including depressions or saturated low spots, spongy or unusually smooth ground, shifting or rippling soil, unexpected water seepage, and fine sediment mixed with water.
- If trapped, guidance urges visitors to stay calm, lean back to spread body weight, slowly work legs upward, use a sturdy object for leverage, and call for assistance if escape is difficult.
- Coverage cites scientific reporting that people remain buoyant in quicksand and typically sink only to about waist level, though freeing oneself can be exhausting.
- Recent incidents used as examples include an Arches National Park hiker stuck to his thigh in December and a Florida man rescued from shoulder-deep mud in February.