It's a quiet start to the day,
as the morning sun
illuminates the urban paradise
below your apartment.
The silence shatters
when an explosion
tears through the streets
from a nearby building.
With the debris rapidly,
heading your way.
Devastating but rare,
the long-term effects
created by building explosions
are disastrous enough to last a lifetime.
In 2020,
Samah Hadid compared
the building explosion
she survived to an earthquake.
The sudden blast
shattered her windows,
spreading glass across the floor.
As the ceiling rained down
on Samah and her infant child,
she felt at any moment
her home would collapse beneath her.
This family came out of the rubble alive, but
No matter how they occur,
building explosions
create chaos in the moment.
But it's the physical
and mental trauma
that haunts the survivors
like a recurring nightmare.
Should you find yourself
in the midst of this frenzy,
follow these steps.
While you cannot
help your proximity to the blast
during the explosion,
afterwards keep your distance
and if possible leave the area immediately.
If the explosion creates a fireball,
the temperature can rise up
4,000 °C (7,232 °F) at the source,
scorching the human body
in an instant
and possibly setting off
subsequent explosions.
At the detonation site,
the air pressure expands
outward rapidly,
creating a vacuum.
Known as a blast wind,
this tiny void
refills itself by exerting a massive force
that pulls in every nearby object and person.
Stay clear of the epicenter
to avoid these high velocity winds.
If you're in the building
where the blast occurred,
don't use the elevators,
and look for emergency officials at the scene.
And if you're in a building
that's safe and away from the site, stay there.
Avoid your human instinct
to rush into danger
or you could end up as another victim.
The explosion sends out a blast wave
made of highly compressed air particles
moving faster than the speed of sound.
On impact,
this initial wave
causes the most damage
to structures and your body.
Suck in that gut,
because your gastrointestinal tract
is completely vulnerable during this blast,
putting your vital organs
at risk of internal rupturing and tearing.
Keeping low can also keep you safer
from the debris flying
above your head
and the blast wave itself.
After this, if you feel nausea
or abdominal pain
seek immediate medical attention.
When in crisis,
humans naturally desire to hold their breath.
But if your lungs
are filled with too much air,
they could burst
as a shock wave rips through your body.
A shock wave is a supersonic concussive
force following the blast wave.
This deadly wave expands outward and up,
carrying energy as it passes through
objects and organs like your lungs.
Breathing in small intervals
will keep the pressure in your lungs low,
making them less likely to burst.
Your eyes are sensitive enough
to be damaged by the blast wave,
even without direct contact,
causing lesions and
impairing your vision for life.
Keep your head down though,
the real danger is yet to come.
While the blast wave
will shatter windows near the site,
it's the lethal shock wave
that breaks windows further away.
Stay away from windows
to avoid the the flying glass
which could cause
significant damage to your eyes.
Eye injuries are potentially fatal
and are suffered
by one out of every ten blast survivors.
While you might think
you're safe at a distance,
that bird's eye view
could be the last thing you see.
Your ears are also dangerously at risk,
depending on your orientation to the blast.
With the pressure rising
to over 103 kilopascals,
or 15 pounds per square inch,
the blast wave is strong enough
to rupture your eardrums,
possibly causing permanent hearing loss.
Cover your head with your arms
and curl into a ball,
tucking your face close to your chest.
Even without a direct hit to the head,
the primary blast can be strong enough
to cause a concussion
or a mild brain injury.
While the blast wave
ends in milliseconds,
the trauma of this event
can follow you the rest of your life.
In addition
to the lingering physical damage
done to their bodies,
survivors of building explosions
often suffer from
post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
and the guilt of being alive.
Long after the rubble
has been cleared
and the dead are laid to rest,
people can feel
a sense of shame
for surviving when many didn't.
Consider seeking medical advice
when dealing with PTSD
or bodily trauma
to prevent any of these
negative long-term effects.
So you kept close to the ground
as the shock wave passed over you,
but the flames inside your apartment
are getting higher.
With the air getting thinner,
it's time to think fast.
How are you going to survive this fire?
We've got the answer on the next
How to Survive.