12-year-old injured when sand buries him

A 12-year-old boy was airlifted Monday from Surf City to Cooper University Hospital in Camden after sand collapsed on him while he was digging and buried half his body, authorities said.

The incident occurred around 1:45 p.m. at the 17th Street beach. The boy's head and chest were buried, said Peter Hartney, a councilman and volunteer firefighter who responded.

The boy was quickly pulled out by lifeguards and bystanders. His condition and identity weren't known, but Hartney said he was breathing before the helicopter arrived and expected to survive.

While it's rare for beach sand to collapse beneath a person, it can happen. In 2012 in Long Branch, a boy died when a sand tunnel he was building collapsed.

"You can easily dig too deep in the sand, because the sand itself is not stable," Hartney said, adding that it slips and slides.

Surf City has an ordinance banning beachgoers from digging beyond a foot into the sand because of the collapse danger.

"There's no warning," Hartney said. "It just does it."

- Michael Boren