18-year-old dead, sister rescued in New Jersey after sand collapsed, trapping them underground
Global News
The death comes less than a week after a 13-year-old boy from Utah died when a tunnel he dug into a sand dune collapsed in on him.
An 18-year-old man has died and his 17-year-old sister was rescued after a hole the pair were digging at a New Jersey beach collapsed in on them.
Police said that Levy Caverley died shortly after 4 p.m. on Tuesday due to the accident.
His sister was also trapped but was rescued and treated at the scene near Toms River on the Jersey Shore.
Authorities said that siblings had been digging a large hole in the sand when it collapsed, trapping them underneath.
The pair were visiting from Maine with their family.
Aerial footage showed more than a dozen first responders on the scene, with many using boards and buckets to dig for Caverley beneath the sand. Emergency crews from neighbouring towns also assisted in the rescue effort.
Caverly’s father described him as a “tech nut” who was interested in computer programming. He was active in his church’s worship team and played drums in a young adult worship band.
“Levi was himself. He was odd. He was quirky. He was not real concerned with what others thought,” his father, Todd Caverly, said, according to ABC News.