Even though his eyes were closed and he was facing the ground in a five-foot trench, the burst was so bright that he could see the bones in his hands that he held over his eyes. Davis counted to 10, slowly. When he stood up and faced Ground Zero, he was hit with a hot wall of air that knocked several men back into the trench. That was the understatement of the year. Some guys were knocked right back into the trench.
Some guys knelt back down in the trench, probably praying.
The best way to describe it is getting hit in the head with a sledgehammer. It didn't knock my helmet off, but it did to several other guys. It felt like it was going to rip your head right off your shoulders. Just part of the splash factor. Another wave was advancing not far behind the initial shockwall.