Those who have vacationed on the beaches of Kill Devil Hills, Nags Head, Kitty Hawk or the Northern Beaches of the Outer Banks, North Carolina are probably familiar with large holes which have been dug and were not refilled before leaving the beach. Where this is a fun past-time for vacationers or their children and seems harmless, the reality of leaving gigantic or deep holes can ruin another person’s vacation because of an injury, especially when tourists are walking along the beach at dusk or nighttime.
These holes are very hard to see after dusk. Many people have been walking the beach and have had serious leg injuries from falling into the holes. Other’s have driven their atv’s or 4×4’s into the holes and caused damage to the vehicle or injured themselves when the vehicle hits the bottom of the hole. Please think about the new beachgoer–if you dig massive or even narrow trenches in the sand, try to destroy your work of art before you leave the beach–if mother nature did not do so.
Not only are the holes dangerous to others, but the poor souls themselves digging in the sand have huge risks. There are a number of reports of people being injured or who have died from the sand collapsing in on them while digging the holes. Web MD reported in 2007 that in the past decade there were 31 fatalities reported and 21 cases of people buried in the sand while the hole they were digging collapsed on top of them. Do we need to remind you that digging a huge cave, under a narrow band of sand, could result in your suffocation death? You would think not, but the Web MD report shows beach goers seem to ignore the obvious sometimes.
Again, try to think of the next beach visitor and follow basic logic of not trying to dig a world record sand cave which can easily cave in or a family member or friend.
About the Editors: Shapiro, Cooper,Lewis & Appleton personal injury law firm is based in Virginia (VA), near the NE North Carolina (NC) border and handles car, truck, railroad, and medical negligence cases and more. Our lawyers proudly edit the Virginia Beach Injuryboard, Norfolk Injuryboard, and Northeast North Carolina Injuryboard as a pro bono public information service. Lawyers licensed in: VA, NC, SC, WV, DC, KY.
Rick Shapiro has practiced personal injury law for over 30 years in Virginia, North Carolina, and throughout the Southeastern United States. He is a Board-Certified Civil Trial Advocate by the National Board of Trial Advocacy (ABA Accredited) and has litigated injury cases throughout the eastern United States, including wrongful death, trucking, faulty products, railroad, and medical negligence claims. During his three-decade career, Shapiro has won client appeals before the VA Supreme Court, VA Court of Appeals, NC Supreme Court, SC Supreme Court, WV Supreme Court, TN Supreme Court, and three times before the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, underscoring Shapiro’s trial achievements. In addition, he and his law firm have won settlements/verdicts in excess of $100 million. His success in and out of the courtroom is a big reason why he was named 2019 “Lawyer of the Year” in railroad law in U.S. News & World Report's Best Lawyers publication (Norfolk, VA area), and he has been named a “Best Lawyer” and “Super Lawyer” by those peer-reviewed organizations for multiple years. Rick was also named a “Leader in the Law, Class of 2022” by Virginia Lawyers Weekly (total of 33 statewide honorees consisting of lawyers and judges across Virginia). And in September 2023, Rick was selected as a recipient of the National Board of Trial Advocacy (NBTA) 2023 President’s Award. Although many nominations were submitted from across the country, Rick was just one of eight attorneys chosen by the prestigious National Board which certifies civil trial attorneys across the U.S. Rick was also recently named to Virginia Lawyers Weekly 2024 Virginia’s Go To Lawyers Medical Malpractice. The attorneys awarded this honor are nominated by their colleagues and chosen by a panel from the publication.
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