Getting caught in quicksand can be fatal, with victims dying mostly from dehydration, hypothermia or heat exhaustion.

What can you do to avoid getting trapped—and to escape if you do?

It starts by knowing where quicksand forms and what it looks like.

Quicksand is just super-saturated sand. Normal wet sand is about 25 percent water; quicksand is more than 70 percent.

Quicksand can form on beaches, tidal flats, riverbanks or near springs—anywhere the ground is saturated with water.

In those places, look out for sand that’s spongy or rippled in appearance, and check suspicious areas with a stick.

Quicksand looks solid, and if you were to place something or even step lightly upon it, it may support you.

But step firmly and the quicksand will liquefy, and you’ll sink. Because humans are buoyant, we typically won’t sink below the waist or mid-chest.

But once the sand grains are out of liquid suspension, they too will sink, and compact around your legs, trapping you.

The more you struggle, the more sand will liquefy and sink, and the more trapped you’ll become.

The key to getting out is to remain calm.

Lie back in slow motion. Wiggle your legs in tiny movements, which will slowly let water in to loosen the compacted sand. Then gradually recline to float on the surface.

Once free, you can slowly crawl or swim to the edge and roll onto solid ground.