I know napalm usage was quite common in wartime between WW2 and Vietnam, and I’m also very aware of just how damaging the substance was to the people affected. Internal damage, skin essentially melting, burning underwater (cue Phil Swift), etc. My question is, how were soldiers able to, for lack of a better word, safely use napalm without harming themselves as well as their targets?
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Usually by dropping it from planes in the form of bombs on the enemy instead of themselves.
Unfortunately, friendly fire did happen on occasions. But if used at a safe distance it didn’t pose a particular danger.
It could also be sprayed by a flamethrower, which again is aimed away from the user.
Napalm is essentially just gasoline in a gel-type consistency. Once the jelly fuel is burned up it’s just a normal fire. The danger comes from getting that gel on you while it is burning, because it is sticky and flammable.
In terms of harm to the user, Agent Orange was probably far worse long term. This was a toxic pesticide sprayed on the forests and water, and soldiers who deployed it or were exposed to it on the ground experienced high rates of cancer.
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