Question:

Lightning flash can cause injury by all of the following, except:

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Three mechanisms are real (current, superheated air, expanding blast); one wording is the odd one out.
Updated On: Jun 24, 2026
  • Direct effect of the electric current
  • Superheated air
  • Expanded and repelled air
  • Compressed air pushed in front of the current
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The Correct Option is D

Solution and Explanation

Step 1: The question asks which listed mechanism does NOT cause lightning injury.
Step 2: Lightning injures through three accepted mechanisms. First, the direct passage of the high-voltage current through the body causes cardiac arrest, burns and neurological damage. So option A is a real mechanism (not the answer).
Step 3: Second, the lightning channel superheats the surrounding air to thousands of degrees, and this superheated air causes burns and flash injuries. So option B is a real mechanism (not the answer).
Step 4: Third, the explosive expansion of that air produces a blast (thunder) that expands and repels the air violently, and this blast effect can throw and injure the victim. So option C is a real mechanism (not the answer).
Step 5: The injury comes from the explosive expansion and the resulting repelled air, not from a column of compressed air being pushed ahead of the current. Compressed air pushed in front of the current is the description that does not fit the accepted mechanisms, so option D is the exception and is the answer.
Conclusion: Lightning injures by the current itself, superheated air and the expanding/repelled air blast, but not by compressed air pushed ahead of it. Answer: option D.
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