|
My guess: debris kills more people than the pressure. Bomb squads use shields and barriers for protection against debris, but the shields wouldn't protect against the pressure of a blast, so presumably they might survive the pressure. (Not that they always survive when a bomb detonates).
Also, most people-killing bombmakers seem to use shrapnel in the bombs, even in WWII hand grenades. When you read of injuries from US bombings, often mention shrapnel wounds, so I assume we're still using shrapnel. Modern suicide bombers often pack little pieces of metal in their bombs, and I would presume they know what they're doing. Maybe the pressure could kill too, but I'm guessing the shrapnel is more important, at least for wider radii.
Concussion grenades, which US police use to disorient people in house raids and such, minimize debris, although perhaps they also limit the explosive force to reduce casualties.
Corollary question: I wonder if pressure is more lethal underwater. I know fish are mangled by pressure from underwater bombs, but I think that's due to fragile air bladder anatomy. Would divers as vulnerable to pressure-only attacks?
|