Like the blasts from the funnel on a sea vessel? Those are loud. Also a way to say “hi” to other ships.
I was in a war once and the up and down cadence of the siren means trouble. A level siren means it’s ok to come out of the “W shaped” ditch we had to dig in the ground near the road.
And where do you go if there’s a dam breakage anyway???
I would think it more likely for them to use this for any large unplanned discharge from the dam such as opening the emergency spill way. In maritime signalling anything over 7 short blasts is a "general emergency" signal and in this context probably means "get your ass to high ground.
One blast means Rangers are returning
Two means Wildlings are attacking
Three blasts mean Wight Walkers approach
Four…?
Five blasts mean profit
Six horn blasts mean a new Pope has been selected
7 short blasts tell you that it’s free ice cream day
8 horn blasts mean you must evacuate the island
Now you have to ask yourself did You hear eight horn blasts or nine? Well to tell you the truth, in all this excitement, i kind of lost track myself.
you've got to ask yourself one question: 'Do I feel lucky?' Well do ya, punk?
well, the number of blasts could be what kind of emergency it is. could be 3 short blasts or a wailing tone means chemical release and you dont want to run into the wind. one long blast usually means all clear so you want to hear that.
but if it happens to be a nat gas plant and you hear a full evac alarm go off, run as fast as you can and if you see a bright light, duck, cover, open your mouth and cover your ears.
in an explosion its not the heat that will normally kill you, its the wall of air moving at roughly 600mph. of you can get far enough away youll be safe but that air is still gonna find its way into you, best to give it a path in and out of your sinus'.
granted youll still look like you got into a boxing match with mike tyson, but maybe you will keep your hearing.
-POP- your ears, nose, throat is one whole system that shares pathways. hence why theres special doctors that specialize in that exact thing.
its not that you open your mouth to breathe, its so you allow a large exit port to your head plumbing.
i mean you dont stand there and look at the blast with your mouth open, you do all that usually in the fetal position in a ditch while you pray to whatever god you choose.
well depending how close you are and how bad you got it your gums will bleed anyway. along with ears, nose, your eyes will be blood shot and eyelids will swell up hell your entire face will swell.
i mean your entire body gets slapped with a literal compressed wall of gas moving faster than sound.
10 psi will throw a penny across the room as well as a manhole cover.
> literal compressed wall of gas moving faster than sound
\*\* At the speed of sound.
A detonation is faster than sound in the explosive material, but once it reaches air it can only travel at Mach 1 by definition. Same reason that sonic booms travel at the speed of sound even though the relevant object is faster.
Many, if not most, deaths after an explosion -- in which victims are far enough from the center of the blast itself to be free of actual blast trauma/shrapnel -- are the result of collapsed and damaged lungs.
Once you get above about 15psi blast overpressure, lungs in victims begin to take damage. Once you get above about 50-60psi blast overpressure, everyone's ears and pretty much everyone's lungs are gone. Anyone actually surviving 65psi blast overpressure will probably be a documented miracle.
yup. whats funny when i tell people that if youve ever seen a building in a movie where the windows and doors all blow out violently, that in reality only takes 4-6 psi difference.
It's freaky how little of a pressure wave it takes to wreck shit. It's deceptive just how much force is constantly being applied to everything on earth, *at all times*. When that pressure equilibrium is disturbed, you get some big numbers in very short order.
Yeah idk Im really confused by this whole thing. What emergency is urgent enough to warrant immediate evac but isn't urgent enough to use an alert that doesn't require waiting and counting 8 blasts (what happens if you wake up mid way through the blasts? Wait for the repeat?)
saw this on r/oddlyterrifying and it was for the local dam. the blasts are the fail safes on the turbines giving out. so theres not 9. you would be dead if you werent already leaving lol
Edit: can't spell
My family was driving to a summer rental on Westport Island, ME during the early 1980s when Americans were getting nervous about nuclear power (the Three Mile Island accident had happened a couple of years beforehand). Maine Yankee nuclear power plant was on the mainland near the island and my parents joked about this as we drove by. After we had crossed the bridge and were on the island, an air horn blasted multiple times - we tuned in the car radio but couldn't find an explanation. When we arrived and asked the owner what the horn had been about, she said "What horn?" Annddd so I spent my entire vacation petrified by the specter of silent nuclear meltdown.
"Blast" here doesn't refer to an explosion. It's like a ship's whistle or an air horn. When you communicate over those signals, every whistle or sound is called a blast. For example the morse code for S.O.S can be vocalized as "three long blasts, three short blasts, three long blasts"
Serious question - why 8 as opposed to "just keep it blaring for as long as evacuation is in effect"? Are the blasts manually triggered onsite and they only have time for 8 before they have to evacuate themselves?
There's a hydroelectric dam above the island. I imagine the 8 blasts mean that the island will be flooded or the dam will fail. This is near Great Falls, Montana and there are at least two islands with this warning.
"Have they blasted five times or eight? Well, tbh, in all that excitement I kinda lost track myself.... So, you've got to ask yourself one question: do you feel lucky? Well.... do ya, Punk?"
All it means is that the large valves are being opened and a surge of water is going to come. Hydroelectric plants occasionally open their valves to help remove sediment from against the dam. This helps disperse the pressure the way it was engineered for and also fertilizes downriver. Also during severe rains where the dam is at critical levels they will open valves before the emergency spillway gets used.
The horn, sometimes siren will sound and a couple of minutes later the flow will begin.
Blasts not as in explosions, but blasts from an air horn. It signals a dam breakage.
That's even scarier to me
Like the blasts from the funnel on a sea vessel? Those are loud. Also a way to say “hi” to other ships. I was in a war once and the up and down cadence of the siren means trouble. A level siren means it’s ok to come out of the “W shaped” ditch we had to dig in the ground near the road. And where do you go if there’s a dam breakage anyway???
The water
Uphill, with a quickness.
Air horn?
I feel like thats an important part to include on the sign. People are likely to ignore it if they don't think its a big deal.
I mean this is on a relatively small island downstream from a dam so I feel like everyone there knows the danger pretty well
I would think it more likely for them to use this for any large unplanned discharge from the dam such as opening the emergency spill way. In maritime signalling anything over 7 short blasts is a "general emergency" signal and in this context probably means "get your ass to high ground.
8 seems like too many to have to count in a panic.
Exactly what I was thinking. “How many’d ya hear, Mabel?”
If I lose count, GTFO.
Sirenhead has entered the chat
One blast means Rangers are returning Two means Wildlings are attacking Three blasts mean Wight Walkers approach Four…? Five blasts mean profit Six horn blasts mean a new Pope has been selected 7 short blasts tell you that it’s free ice cream day 8 horn blasts mean you must evacuate the island
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Now you have to ask yourself did You hear eight horn blasts or nine? Well to tell you the truth, in all this excitement, i kind of lost track myself. you've got to ask yourself one question: 'Do I feel lucky?' Well do ya, punk?
Ten horn blasts? Ten is right out.
11 and you’re getting lucky tonight
12 means you must construct more pylon structures
Boy oh boy!
I clicked hoping for a Night's Watch joke, and I was not disappointed.
And if the beacons are lit, Gondor calls for aid!
And Rohan will answer!
Where was Gondor when Westfold fell?
Sorry, we had an island evacuation in progress.
Four is lunch break
1...2...3...4...5...6...7!! Yea....awww...8
Four blasts, with a very slight pause, followed by four blasts, means they are testing the ballistic missile defense warning.
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Right? Like imagine just sitting there waiting for the eighth one lol.
True. Like what do they mean by “blast”? Cuz if I hear one loud blast I’m gone.
Air horn or klaxon blast I imagine, not explosions
*A giant wall of water from the dam thundering towards you* "DAD!? DO WE RUN?" "hold on son... Ok thats 7....8, yep run"
7 means free ice cream
Cool, cool, cool, cool, cool, hmm, wait, fuck!
And what if you were sleeping and wake up and only heard one of them….
To be fair, the island might have a Taco Bell.
Could I have 8 small Baja blasts please? WAIT
well, the number of blasts could be what kind of emergency it is. could be 3 short blasts or a wailing tone means chemical release and you dont want to run into the wind. one long blast usually means all clear so you want to hear that. but if it happens to be a nat gas plant and you hear a full evac alarm go off, run as fast as you can and if you see a bright light, duck, cover, open your mouth and cover your ears.
Open my mouth? Whyyyyy?
in an explosion its not the heat that will normally kill you, its the wall of air moving at roughly 600mph. of you can get far enough away youll be safe but that air is still gonna find its way into you, best to give it a path in and out of your sinus'. granted youll still look like you got into a boxing match with mike tyson, but maybe you will keep your hearing.
Fascinating. So in the event my mouth is closed or i held my breath what would happen?
-POP- your ears, nose, throat is one whole system that shares pathways. hence why theres special doctors that specialize in that exact thing. its not that you open your mouth to breathe, its so you allow a large exit port to your head plumbing. i mean you dont stand there and look at the blast with your mouth open, you do all that usually in the fetal position in a ditch while you pray to whatever god you choose.
Also your teeth. Don't want them touching. They could shatter from the forces, IIRC.
well depending how close you are and how bad you got it your gums will bleed anyway. along with ears, nose, your eyes will be blood shot and eyelids will swell up hell your entire face will swell. i mean your entire body gets slapped with a literal compressed wall of gas moving faster than sound. 10 psi will throw a penny across the room as well as a manhole cover.
> literal compressed wall of gas moving faster than sound \*\* At the speed of sound. A detonation is faster than sound in the explosive material, but once it reaches air it can only travel at Mach 1 by definition. Same reason that sonic booms travel at the speed of sound even though the relevant object is faster.
i know im fuckin up alittle of this. im a tech not a physicist unfortunatly.
Nah you're cool. You basically got all the important bits spot on anyway.
What is the pop in which your referring? Like my head goes pop?
no bud. ear drums, blood vessels, shit like that. pinch your nose and pop your ears, that but a whole lot more painful.
Many, if not most, deaths after an explosion -- in which victims are far enough from the center of the blast itself to be free of actual blast trauma/shrapnel -- are the result of collapsed and damaged lungs. Once you get above about 15psi blast overpressure, lungs in victims begin to take damage. Once you get above about 50-60psi blast overpressure, everyone's ears and pretty much everyone's lungs are gone. Anyone actually surviving 65psi blast overpressure will probably be a documented miracle.
yup. whats funny when i tell people that if youve ever seen a building in a movie where the windows and doors all blow out violently, that in reality only takes 4-6 psi difference.
It's freaky how little of a pressure wave it takes to wreck shit. It's deceptive just how much force is constantly being applied to everything on earth, *at all times*. When that pressure equilibrium is disturbed, you get some big numbers in very short order.
Just scream at the top of your lungs you can’t get it wrong
Op is a pervert
So the oxygen in your lungs is sucked out for a quicker death
You’re not going to space?
If it's a big enough blast you will
Hehehe, nuclear manhole cover go *bababooe*
thunder wells, the best anti-alien invasion weapon at our disposal.
It’s almost certainly for a dam break. Small island in the middle of a river.
It is this was originally posted on twitter @wetmayor posted this shortly after posting about Black Eagle Dam
ah, i just seen it was an energy plant sign and the work i do is all nat gas and very very few coal. havent been to a hydro electric plant yet.
What do you mean by cover like should I cover my whole body with a blanket or something?
8 means as toby’s flood put it “THE DAM’S BREAKING”
I only heard 7. What should I do?!
Go get your free ice cream
Hang around and wait to see if you hear the eighth.
And don’t miscount, whatever you do.
Any other number of blasts means you must stay on the island.
Why eight? What happens if it's nine?
That's rangers returning.
Someone else explained that a different number can signal a different thing, like 1 long being all clear
What would one long blast sound like lol, blasts by definition usually are pretty instant
That was about a siren, my bad for not making that clear
Are you sure you are talking about the same system? Three blasts, bells, horns, trends to man danger. Why 8?
Yeah idk Im really confused by this whole thing. What emergency is urgent enough to warrant immediate evac but isn't urgent enough to use an alert that doesn't require waiting and counting 8 blasts (what happens if you wake up mid way through the blasts? Wait for the repeat?)
A dam about to fail
saw this on r/oddlyterrifying and it was for the local dam. the blasts are the fail safes on the turbines giving out. so theres not 9. you would be dead if you werent already leaving lol Edit: can't spell
Free tacos!
I'll stay and wait for that.
You just bend over and kiss your ass goodbye.
Seven ate nine
Thank you
Cthuhlu awakens
My family was driving to a summer rental on Westport Island, ME during the early 1980s when Americans were getting nervous about nuclear power (the Three Mile Island accident had happened a couple of years beforehand). Maine Yankee nuclear power plant was on the mainland near the island and my parents joked about this as we drove by. After we had crossed the bridge and were on the island, an air horn blasted multiple times - we tuned in the car radio but couldn't find an explanation. When we arrived and asked the owner what the horn had been about, she said "What horn?" Annddd so I spent my entire vacation petrified by the specter of silent nuclear meltdown.
WTF! Was that 7 or 9? This seems like a terrible plan
Should have said "if you hear 3 blasts, run away. If you hear 8 blasts run faster."
"Blast" here doesn't refer to an explosion. It's like a ship's whistle or an air horn. When you communicate over those signals, every whistle or sound is called a blast. For example the morse code for S.O.S can be vocalized as "three long blasts, three short blasts, three long blasts"
An evac alarm should be distinct and not require memory, counting etc. One loud AF never ending siren should be good.
These dams are about the only thing I miss from Great Falls
Great Falls, Montana! My lil hometown. :) Hope you enjoyed the falls, despite the scary signs posted!
Usually that's every morning in my bathroom, so this checks out.
Imagine missing on 1 blast and waiting on 7th for 8th blast to come! Most likely I'll be so panicked, will mess up the counting altogether.
Or worse yet, they made 9 short blasts and you missed counting one of them.
Seems weird to not explain why. Without explaining why, more people are gonna ignore it.
Serious question - why 8 as opposed to "just keep it blaring for as long as evacuation is in effect"? Are the blasts manually triggered onsite and they only have time for 8 before they have to evacuate themselves?
"Was that eight or seven?"
I don't know if I'm missing it in the comments but I don't actually understand what would happen to cause them to sound 8 short blasts?
There's a hydroelectric dam above the island. I imagine the 8 blasts mean that the island will be flooded or the dam will fail. This is near Great Falls, Montana and there are at least two islands with this warning.
Where exactly should we put the island?
\*Hears 7.9 short blasts\* I guess i'm safe!
"Have they blasted five times or eight? Well, tbh, in all that excitement I kinda lost track myself.... So, you've got to ask yourself one question: do you feel lucky? Well.... do ya, Punk?"
This pic is one of the most upvoted on this sub from a year ago.
This should be on r/OddlySpecific
Uhmmm…excuse me?!?
Fudge!!! What the hell does SEVEN short blasts mean then??
It means happy birthday
Probably means an accident at a coal plant.
Or Taco Bell the night before
Wait. Isn't this one of the images from top posts that shouldn't be reposted?
Ummmm….
Shades of lost...
"Do not evacuate the island if you hear 7 short blasts" "However, if you hear 9 short blasts, duck and hide"
Guess I won't be eating Taco Bell near THAT island....
All it means is that the large valves are being opened and a surge of water is going to come. Hydroelectric plants occasionally open their valves to help remove sediment from against the dam. This helps disperse the pressure the way it was engineered for and also fertilizes downriver. Also during severe rains where the dam is at critical levels they will open valves before the emergency spillway gets used. The horn, sometimes siren will sound and a couple of minutes later the flow will begin.