Bribie Island fall: Josh Taylor identified as the man buried alive in sand on Queensland island and now fighting for life

The man who fought for his life after falling into a 5ft hole and being buried alive in the sand on Bribie Island has been identified as Josh Taylor.

Queensland paramedics and an RACQ LifeFlight rescue helicopter crew were called to help the 25-year-old man after he fell into a hole and was buried in sand on Bribie Island, north of Brisbane, just before 2pm.

Paramedics were on the scene for two hours to resuscitate Mr Taylor, who had been without a pulse for 45 minutes.

He is still in critical condition.

Witness Nathan, one of those who helped dig Mr Taylor out, told Seven News that the hole had been dug to cook a pig.

“He got up from the chair, the sand had settled a little bit under him,” he said.

'He staggered back. He had stretched out his arms to clearly break the fall. He kept going down, hitting sand as he held out his arms.

“He was so deep in the hole that you couldn't see him, his feet, unless you stood on top of the hole.”

Bystanders rushed to Mr Taylor's assistant and dug him out before tying a rope to his feet to pull him out of the hole.

“There were fifteen grown men at the end of this rope and he still wouldn't budge,” Nathan recalled.

“Then the paramedic thought to pull him this way…” the suction failed and he jumped out.

“I pray he gets through this.”

Mr Taylor's family are at his side at Princess Alexandra Hospital, where he remains in a critical but stable condition, The Courier Mail reported.

Nathan was leaving the beach with his family when a group of men shouting for help to save their friend from hiding in the sand drove up, he told NCA NewsWire.

When he arrived at the scene, the 25-year-old's family and friends were desperately digging to get him out.

“I realized someone had their head in a hole and I was just digging, digging, digging…” he said.

“When I first went to the hole, I couldn't even see his foot. It was that deep,” he said.

More than 15 people were digging in the sand to get the man out before paramedics and rangers arrived.

'His whole family shouted at us, telling us to help and telling us to grab a rope so we could pull him out. It was quite horrific,” he said.

“There were about fifteen guys pulling the rope and he wouldn't budge.”

After some time of pulling and digging, the young man finally burst through the sand's surface, but the force with which he was pulled out caused further injuries, Nathan said.

'It was quite intense when he jumped out. I threw up,” Nathan said.

'He broke. The suction, the power of everyone who pulls.'

When they got him out, the man had no pulse and the rangers began CPR.

Area rangers also applied a defibrillator before the arrival of paramedics.

A helicopter pilot landed on the beach to deliver the RACQ LifeFlight Rescue Critical Care Doctor and flight paramedic as close as possible to the accident scene.

The rescue team then took the man in critical condition to the Princess Alexandra Hospital for further treatment.

It is understood that it took 45 minutes for the man's pulse to return.

QAS paramedic Peter Batt praised the actions of those who helped.

'The fact that they managed to get this young man's heartbeat back after a long period of resuscitation is proof that proper resuscitation was carried out. “It's a credit to the people who stepped in and helped with their first aid,” he said. .

Bribie Island, part of Queensland's Moreton Bay region, is a popular holiday destination.