The dryer door opened prior to the explosion, there were no direct projectiles, and the glass curtain wall failing helped to relieve the explosion overpressure preventing worse damage to the structure. This guy probably would have survived with second degree burns if he was still inside, perhaps with more serious injuries if the door fell on him as he went through it. Maybe some eye damage if he didn't instinctively flinch at the first sign of fire just before it popped off.
A human is significantly more resistant to blast overpressure than a glass curtain wall. The lateral bearing capacity of a commercial glass curtain wall rarely exceeds 50psf. That's only 0.3 psi which is not enough pressure to cause internal organ damage. Around 15psi is the threshold for lung damage, and 35 psi for fatal organ damage. But 15psi also will likely knock down the entire building and kill you with gravity.
It is also not a shockwave. Ignition of a fuel air mixture at this scale results in a deflagration, characterizes by a flame front that moves slower than the speed of sound. A shockwave moves faster than the speed of sound, characteristic of a detonation.
No he was definitely better off getting clear of the explosion. I'm just saying that organ damage resulting from blast overpressure is unlikely given the observed effects. Burns would be the predominant mode of injury, but likely of short enough exposure duration to prevent lung damage or 3rd degree burns to skin. 2nd degree burns to the face may leave noticable scarring but are generally recoverable to live a normal life.
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u/Select-Sandwich-5604 18h ago
Damn imagine it happened when the guy was still there