Quicksand Horror on Beach

Written by Angela Gooch on April 4th, 2008 in Accidents, Human Interest.

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Quicksand Horror Winthorpe Beach Jackson’s Corner

East Lindsey District Council erected warning signs near the beach at Jackson’s Corner.

A grandmother tells of nightmare horror when she and four of her grandchildren were sucked deep into mud on the beach at Jackson’s Corner near Skegness.

Mrs Marina Bargh of Staveley near Chesterfield said one of the children, four year old Jodi, sank up to his neck in the squelching mud. She said they were walking along the beach when they stepped into a shallow pool, moments later she sank up to her waist and sand and slime were sucking at her legs.

Mrs Bargh said one of the children sank up to his armpits and the more they struggled, the more they were sucked down. Though they were all screaming, no one seemed to notice. Eventually the grandmother managed to haul herself free and rescue the children.

The unfortunate family were holidaying in Skegness when the nighmare happened. They were visited by the Mayor of Skegness, Coun Nell Fagan before cutting their holiday short and returning to Staveley.

Nightmare on the beach
A WARNING sign has been erected at Jackson’s Corner, Winthorpe, after grandmother and three of her grandchildren sank deep into mud on the beach.
And on Monday the grandmother, 50-year-old Mrs Marina Bargh, of Eckington Road, Staveley, near Chesterfield, broke down and wept as she spoke of her frightening ordeal, in which she thought she was going to die.
Mrs Bargh said one of the children, four-year-old Jody, sank up to his neck in the squelching mud.
“We were all in our wellingtons and decided to walk along the water’s edge holding hands and splashing,” she said.
“We walked back from the beach and had gone about 25 yards when we stepped into a shallow pool.
“The next thing I knew I was up to my waist. Sand and slime were sucking at my legs and pulling me under.

Screaming

“We were still holding hands and I was screaming for help. Michelle was on the edge of the pool up to her knees in mud. I told her to pull Nathan and she took hold of both his wrists.
“Then I heard Jody screaming. I turned round and the sand was up to his armpits. “The slurping and gulping noise of the sand was terrible. The more we struggled the more we were sucked down.
“I thought we were going to go under and suffocate.”
Mrs Bargh, who has a bad heart, continued: “I kept screaming but no-one came. There was a family nearby on the beach but they didn’t seem to notice. I was so tired and nearly ready to give up. I rested for a moment but saw Jody being sucked down. Only his head was above the sand. I held his chin up and had to pull his hair to keep his head out of the muddy sand.
“I thought if he was going to go I would go with him. I really thought that was it.
“Then as I was struggling I touched some hard sand with one of my feet. I leant backwards and heaved. Michelle was still pulling and we somehow managed to pull ourselves free,” she said.

Danger
Mrs Bargh said they were covered in mud. Most of their clothes were ruined and their wellingtons were pulled of in the sand. “It was not like sand softened by the rain. It was more like quicksand and it was black and smelt,” she said.
Mrs Bargh, who came to Skegness for three day’s rest, said an investigation must be carried out before a life was lost.
Warning signs should be erected pointing out the danger, she said. “No-one should have to go through what we did.
“People think they are safe on the beach. It’s a child’s natural reaction to splash in a puddle,” she said.
Mrs Bargh cut short her stay in Skegness to return home.
Before she left she was visited by the Mayor of Skegness, Coun Mrs Nell Fagan. The Mayor was full of praise for the grandmother. “She deserves a medal,” she told The Standard on Tuesday.

Beware
A sign erected on the beach yesterday (Thursday) by East Lindsey District Council, warns bathers to beware of sinking mud.
Any suggestion that Mrs Bargh was exaggerating the incident was soon removed by coastguard Mr Bernard O’Reilly who was one of the first on the scene.
He said on Wednesday: “If Mrs Bargh had not been there the little one would have gone under.”
There was quite a lot of mud on the beach, particularly in the summer months, he said, and the recent rain and heavy seas had made matters worse. “One minute it can be clean, the next it’s muddy,” he said.

Below: A sign warning of quicksand on the beach was erected by East Lindsey District Council but was replaced with another when complaints were voiced that it would put people off the beach.

warning sign quicksand winthorpe beach skegness