What is a significant effect of negative blast pressure?

Negative blast pressure refers to the phenomenon that occurs when an explosion generates a low-pressure wave behind the initial shock wave. This negative pressure can have several significant effects, one of which is its ability to conceal the area of origin.

When an explosion occurs, the blast wave pushes outward creating positive pressure, but the subsequent negative pressure wave can draw debris, smoke, and other materials back towards the point of origin. This movement can obscure evidence and hinder investigators from accurately determining where the explosion originated. The negative blast pressure can also influence how fire patterns manifest, making it difficult to identify the starting point of the fire or explosion.

This characteristic of negative blast pressure is crucial for fire investigators, as they must be able to discern the details of the event to piece together what happened. The ability to mask or distort the physical evidence plays a significant role in investigations related to explosions, thereby affirming the choice related to its concealment effect.

The other options do not accurately reflect the nature of negative blast pressure in the context of fire investigations, emphasizing why this choice stands out.