Paramedics work to free a trapped girl after a sandcastle collapsed on them on Salt Rock beach.
Two people were rescued on Tuesday after they dug a two-meter-deep hole on a KwaZulu-Natal beach and the embankment collapsed on them.
According to Paul Herbst, a spokesman for Medi Response KZN, the young woman and a man were buried in the sand on Salt Rock beach on the north coast.
The man was helped out of the enveloping sand, while the young woman was covered up to her neck.
“This poses a threat with respect to compartment syndrome,” he said.
Compartment syndrome occurs when blood flow is restricted to a part of the body due to weight applied to the area.
This results in lactic acid buildup and can be fatal once the weight is off.
Rescue teams worked for an hour to free her while advanced life support paramedics worked to stabilize her.
Both were rescued.
Note: It was previously reported that the two got stuck in the sand while building a sandcastle, when they were actually digging a hole.
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