Bribie Island victim: Family breaks silence about 25-year-old ‘buried alive’ with inspiring update

The family of a young man who was buried alive under five feet of sand at a popular beach have broken their silence as he fights for his life.

Josh Taylor, 25, had no pulse for 45 minutes after the match horrific incident on Bribie Island on Saturday afternoon.

His friends and family took turns providing CPR until he was flown to Brisbane's Princess Alexandra Hospital, where he remains in a critical condition.

Taylor's uncle, Barry Taylor, spoke to 7NEWS outside the hospital on Wednesday and said his cousin was “fighting hard” to stay alive.

Josh Taylor remains in a critical condition after being buried alive in a hole on Bribie Island

“He is still critical, he is in intensive care and we are awaiting the results of more tests,” Taylor said.

“He's fighting hard, mate, he's fighting really hard, his heart is still beating.

'We are devastated. It's been really hard for us to comprehend what happened to Josh.”

Mr Taylor described his cousin as a 'lively' and 'energetic' person who 'loves the outdoors, fishing and camping'.

“We can still see him now and we are very grateful for their help,” Barry said.

Six days have now passed since Taylor was pulled out of the sandbox by fifteen men.

A witness who assisted in Mr Taylor's rescue was told that the group had dug the sandpit to cook a pig, similar to the traditional Maori cooking style of hangi.

“He got up from the chair, the sand had sunk a little under him,” Nathan told 7News on Sunday evening.

'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.”

One visitor, Nathan, was leaving the beach with his family when a group of men shouted for help to save their friend.

A witness who assisted in Mr Taylor's rescue was told that the group had dug the sandpit to cook a pig, similar to the traditional Maori cooking style of hangi.

When he arrived at the scene, Mr Taylor'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 told NCA NewsWire that more than 15 people were digging in the sand to get the man out before paramedics and rangers arrived.

'His whole family was shouting at us, telling us to help, to get a rope so we could pull him out. It was pretty horrific,” Nathan said.

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

Queensland paramedics and a rescue helicopter from RACQ Lifeflight were called to help Mr Taylor after he fell into a hole and was buried in sand

After some time of pulling and digging, Mr. Taylor finally burst through the sand surface, but the force of the pull caused further injuries, Nathan said.

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

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