By admin 
RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) — With summer unofficially underway, lifeguard and coastal rescue squads are reminding North Carolina beach visitors about dangers along the coast.
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One that can be avoided is the human creation of deep holes in the sand along beaches. Coastal visitors have had sand holes collapse on them, in a few cases turning deadly.
In other cases, people can trip and fall into the deep holes. Covered by tides, people wading in seemingly shallow surf can quickly end up in a deep spot, which can be very troublesome for children.
As the 2026 North Carolina beach season starts, one Outer Banks rescue team warned visitors — and showed the difficulty in sand rescues.
Corolla Beach Rescue, Currituck Fire & EMS, and Corolla Fire Rescue recently simulated a major sand hole collapse with trapped victims.
“The danger of digging deep holes in the sand is real, fast, and incredibly heavy,” Corolla Beach Rescue said, along with a video of crews trying to save a person in the simulation last month.
A cubic meter of dry beach sand weighs more than a ton — at 3,527 pounds. The same wet sand weighs more than 2 tons at 4,188 pounds, Corolla Beach Rescue said.
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“Enjoy the sand, but remember: when you are done digging, fill it in!” the ocean rescue team said.
In addition to being dangerous for people, officials said sea turtles, particularly hatchlings, can become trapped or disoriented in large holes.
In 2023, at the Outer Banks in Frisco, after a hole was dug into the back areas of dunes, it collapsed onto Chase Conyers, 17, at Cape Hatteras National Seashore.
Chase from Virginia was buried under several feet of sand after the dune — not visible from the beachfront — apparently collapsed into the hole.
A 7-year-old girl, Sloan Mattingly, died on the beach at Lauderdale-by-the-Sea in Florida when a 4-to-5-foot-deep hole collapsed on her in 2024. Sloan’s 9-year-old brother survived.
One deep beach hole that was left behind in Nags Head 10 years ago became famous on social media. It was so deep that a ladder could be placed inside.
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