Toddler, 2, Briefly Buried In Jersey Shore Sand Collapse

SEA GIRT, NJ — A 2-year-old toddler had to be rescued in a new incident of a Jersey Shore beach collapse over the weekend:

This happened 11:22 a.m. Saturday in Sea Girt: Police said they were called to the beach at Neptune Place (a local road) to help with a child. When they got there, they met with the parents of a two-year-old boy who said the child had been playing on the beach when the sand around him suddenly collapsed.

The toddler was briefly buried in the sand.

"Fortunately, the child's father quickly extricated him within two to three minutes, and the child remained conscious and alert," said Sea Girt Police.

The toddler boy was taken to Jersey Shore University Medical Center for observation.

Beach collapses on the Jersey Shore have happened multiple times in the past, and they have been fatal:

In May 2022, an 18-year-old teen from Maine was visiting the Jersey Shore with his family when he became trapped in a beach collapse in Toms River. That happened in the Chadwick Beach section, where the teen and his 17-year-old sister had been digging deep holes in the sand. The girl was able to be pulled out, but rescuers were not able to save the teenage boy, who suffocated to death. Teen Who Died In NJ Sand Collapse Loved Music, Tech, Father Says (May 2022)

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and NJ Department of Environmental Protection have blocked off the sand where this happened Saturday, said Sea Girt Chief of Police Justin Macko.

The following agencies responded to this incident Saturday: Belmar EMS, Sea Girt Police and OEM and Sea Girt DPW.