If You See This Thing, Don’t Even Think About Going Near

Bright Side

Nature can be seriously powerful, and sometimes way more dangerous than it looks. Back in July 2011, a 44-year-old man was dancing near the Nakalele blowhole in Maui when he got dragged in by the force of the water. He popped back up with the next wave for a second, but then disappeared for good. Rescuers searched for three days, but sadly, they never found him — it’s believed he was swept out into the ocean. Blowholes might look like cool tourist spots, but this shows just how dangerous they can really be. It’s a reminder that you should never underestimate the crazy strength of nature.  Credit: Alofa'aga Blowholes: By Neil, CC BY 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=9405805 Animation is created by Bright Side.  ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Music from TheSoul Sound: https://thesoul-sound.com/   Check our Bright Side podcast on Spotify and leave a positive review! https://open.spotify.com/show/0hUkPxD34jRLrMrJux4VxV   Subscribe to Bright Side: https://goo.gl/rQTJZz ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Our Social Media: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/brightside Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brightside.official TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@brightside.official?lang=en Telegram: https://t.me/bright_side_official   Stock materials (photos, footages and other): https://www.depositphotos.com https://www.shutterstock.com https://www.eastnews.ru ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  For more videos and articles visit: http://www.brightside.me  ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This video is made for entertainment purposes. We do not make any warranties about the completeness, safety and reliability. Any action you take upon the information in this video is strictly at your own risk, and we will not be liable for any damages or losses. It is the viewer's responsibility to use judgement, care and precaution if you plan to replicate.

Transcript

00:00A trip to Hawaii may become your last. This is exactly what happened to David Potts, who came to Maui to spend some quality time with his girlfriend.

00:10We all know that the ocean can pose a whole bunch of dangers. Riptides, sharks, poisonous algae, even a seemingly safe sand hole can end your life in a matter of seconds.

00:22Blowholes can do that too. The thing is, they're not frequently spoken of, therefore, many people just don't know that they'd better stay away from them.

00:32Now, let me break it down for you what a blowhole is. You all know sea caves, right?

00:38As any other formation, these grow in size. In case they grow landward and upward, they sorta turn into vertical shafts, exposing themselves toward the surface.

00:48As of now, everything seems fine, no extreme danger whatsoever, right?

00:53But the scary things start if those shafts begin getting hydraulic compression.

00:57In this case, seawater is released through a port right on top of the blowhole.

01:01The result looks like a geyser, and by the way, those blowholes even have a second name, marine geysers.

01:09The height of the spray may vary, and it's up to the geometry of the cave and blowhole, combined with tidal levels and swell conditions.

01:16So what exactly happened to David, who met his early demise in Hawaii?

01:21Those who were unlucky enough to witness this horrible incident said that Mr. Potts had been spotted dancing around one of those blowholes.

01:28He was dangerously close, just inches away from the opening.

01:32Moreover, some people claimed he had even been playing in the sprays of water that were shooting high into the sky.

01:38Then he suddenly disappeared into thin air.

01:41As it was discovered later, he fell into a blowhole.

01:45There were no official statements concerning whether Mr. Potts had passed away or not.

01:49Yet he was never found, meaning his destiny is pretty much clear to everyone.

01:54The story took place back in 2011, so he's definitely not coming back, sadly.

02:00The big question is, who's responsible for this tragedy?

02:04There are no warning signs at the sign, so David could not know how dangerous that innocent fun was in reality.

02:11Moreover, witnesses claim it was slippery there, so it must have been an accident.

02:16However, despite most tourists knowing how notorious this area is, they still continue visiting the site.

02:23No tragic reminders help.

02:27So, how do you save yourself in case you come across a blowhole?

02:31The best way to do that is to keep as far away from it as possible.

02:35If you get sucked by it, your chances of surviving are virtually nil.

02:39Just for comparison, not every tsunami gives you chances this low.

02:44For instance, a one-foot water level tsunami only gives you a .01% probability of passing away.

02:50Even a three-foot water level, when you literally cannot stand on the ground, only says that the probability of passing away is high.

02:58Blowholes, on the contrary, don't give you any chances.

03:02They pull you in once and for all.

03:05But how do these terrifying holes actually work?

03:08Blowholes are most likely to form in places where there are crevices.

03:12A good example of a crevice is a lava tube.

03:15A lava tube, or you can also alternatively hear the name pyroduct, is a natural channel created by the movement of lava from a volcanic vent.

03:24When it's traveling beneath the solidified exterior of a lava flow, when the lava within the tube drains away, it results in the formation of a cave.

03:34Those tubes can often be found along fault lines.

03:37A fault line is a flat fracture in the rock where significant displacement has occurred due to rock movement.

03:43Major faults in the Earth's crust are caused by tectonic forces, often forming at plate boundaries, like those found in subduction zones or transform faults.

03:53The rapid movement of these active faults generates most earthquakes, although some faults may shift slowly without causing seismic activity.

04:01It's known as a seismic creep.

04:04The next ingredient is powerful waves.

04:07When they hit the coast, water gets in those crevices.

04:10But since there's high pressure inside, it bursts out in the form of spray.

04:14To be honest, it's a whole show, as those water bursts are accompanied by a particular loud noise, which makes it very attractive for tourists.

04:24Sure thing, these formations do not only exist in Hawaii.

04:28Probably the most popular blowhole out there is located far away from Maui, in New South Wales, Australia.

04:35There's a small town of Kayama, and only around 15,000 people call it home.

04:41However, this small place attracts myriads of people because of a blowhole also nicknamed Kayama.

04:48This name has a meaning behind it.

04:50It's literally translated as, where the sea makes a noise.

04:54And remember, blowholes are normally accompanied by a particular sound.

04:58The town of Kayama literally makes its living thanks to this unusual geological formation, attracting up to 900,000 tourists each year.

05:08There must be something special to see other than the hole, right?

05:12Otherwise, so many people wouldn't be ready to pay their hard-earned money to travel there.

05:17The blowhole in question can spray water up to 82 feet in the air.

05:21Trust me, if you come close to this place, you'll get thoroughly drenched in water.

05:25While this is not surprising, as we're dealing with the world's biggest blowhole here.

05:29Remember I told you, once you get into the blowhole, there's no coming back?

05:34It's not entirely true.

05:36Scott Gutterson actually ventured inside, studied the blowhole, and even found a secret chamber there.

05:42When he first went down to the bottom of Kayama, he found there a couple of bronze statues, some fishing rods, hats, a pushbike, and even money.

05:51Still, you gotta remember that Mr. Gutterson is a professional, and you should never repeat his stunts.

05:58It's not the only blowhole that the town of Kayama has to offer.

06:02There's one called Little Blowhole, all because of its narrow shape.

06:06The good thing about it is that it's safer to visit than its big brother, but it can promise views as spectacular as the Big Blowhole.

06:14The brothers are a bit far away from each other, though.

06:17The big one is just several feet away from the coastline, and the little one is around a mile south of the main blowhole.

06:24Sometimes, there are fun legends behind those natural phenomena.

06:28You see, modern people can explain why water bursts from underneath the ground.

06:33We know the mechanics and logic behind it.

06:36But in olden times, people were way more superstitious, and it was not only easier to explain various phenomena as something supernatural.

06:44Sometimes, it was the only one explanation available due to the lack of knowledge and equipment.

06:50Thus, La Bufadora, a big blowhole in Mexico, got its beautiful legend.

06:56People used to believe that there was a whale trapped in the rocky point, and that the whale would blow water to attract the attention of its pod.

07:03With time, the whale turned to stone and remained there forever.

07:07Nobody definitely believes in it in the 21st century, but this legend helps attract tourists from all over the world, which locals are very happy about.

07:16You see, La Bufadora is located in a small town 17 miles south of Ensenada, and the blowhole helps create working places.

07:25Locals opened souvenir and food places, and at some point, there were about 150 active businesses not far away from the famous blowhole.

07:34You can often hear that people call La Bufadora a marine geyser, and while some blowholes can be referred to this way, this is not the case with La Bufadora.

07:44This one lacks thermal sources, and thus, it can't be called a geyser.

07:49The water sprout here is the result of air trapped in a sea cave and forced upward.

07:54For it to happen, a wave must push the air into the cave.

07:58As a result, this wave is released in the form of water, recedes, creating that signature spray going upward.

08:05By the way, those sprays can reach up to 100 feet into the air.

08:09The sprays have their own time frequency, too. It depends on multiple factors.

08:13But as for La Bufadora, the range between eruptions is 13 to 17 seconds.

08:18That's it for today. So hey, if you pacified your curiosity, then give the video a like and share it with your friends.

08:25Or if you want more, just click on these videos and stay on the Bright Side.

08:29Zap hole, I can see that in the 90s, the high screen Ch session looks like they might have a few of them.

08:33Thank you!

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