In mining, a windblast is a sudden rush of air or gas due to the collapse of a void.
When the collapse occurs, the air or gas occupying the void is displaced by rock, resulting in a pressure wave and windblast that propagates along the roadways (tunnels) of the mine.
[1][2] Windblast prevention is centred on not allowing the void to form in the first place.
Windblast prevention also relies on monitoring to ensure the void does not form (and stopping production if one does begin to form), and the use of different methods to try to promote caving, such as hydraulic fracturing[3] and the use of explosives.
This may involve the following: Windblast should not be confused with an outburst, which is the sudden and violent ejection of rock and gas from a coal seam and the surrounding strata.