OCEAN CITY, Md.- The day after an 11-year old Pittsburgh boy became trapped in a collapsed sand tunnel, Capt. Butch Arbin of the Ocean City Beach Patrol was speaking to beach goers about the dangers of digging deep holes in the sand.

"Our rule on the beach is the hole can be knee deep to the smallest person near the hole," Arbin said.

But, despite the efforts to get out the message, Arbin said many people do not realize just how unstable sand can be.

When a child is trapped in the sand, Arbin said it is almost like having a boa constrictor snake wrapped around the child. 

"The problem is, if you are in that and the sand's packed around you, as you inhale, your chest expands creating a void," Arbin noted.  "Then you exhale and the sand will fill in tighter around you."

Beach Patrol Public Relations Coordinator Kristin Joson is passing out coloring books to children at the beach that explain some of the hazards of the sand and water and how to avoid them.