In recent years, the risk of harm has been very high in France. An explosion during a terrorist act can therefore happen next to the building you are in.

In the event of an explosion outside the home or building, a few reflexes allow you to get to safety quickly, we explain them to you in this video.

Some of the actions presented here relate to the situation in which you are able to anticipate the explosion to protect yourself from the blast effect.

What is blast?

The latter, also called blast, is an overpressure wave given off by the explosion which creates terrible damage to internal organs by compressing them. It is the blast effect that usually kills firefighters responding to a fire, when an explosion occurs.

Plugging your ears and opening your mouth helps minimize this compression by pushing air out of the body, without going through the eardrums.

The blast also throws debris and objects that can prove fatal if they strike victims.

What steps should be taken in the event of an explosion ? 

An explosion goes off outside.

Throw yourself on the floor behind a sofa or a piece of furniture.

To avoid the blast effect (damage to organs due to the blast of the explosion), cover your ears and open your mouth.

Contact the emergency services: by phone to 112 or by SMS to 114.

To find out what to do when shots are fired outside the building, you can watch our video How to react when gunshots are fired from outside?

To learn how to detect the signs that can help you recognize a dangerous individual, you can watch our video What are the signs to recognize a suspicious individual?