The Emergency

• The first priority is to deal with the emergency. Any injured or ill person should receive immediate medical attention, and the location should be secured and examined to ensure that the danger has subsided. Once examined, the location should be preserved for investigators to begin their work.
  
  

Beginning the Investigation

• Once the injured are removed the accident investigation should begin immediately with interviews of witnesses to get first-hand accounts. The quicker the better, before witnesses talk amongst each other, which could alter their stories. Talk to individuals rather than groups and ask what they saw. Don't prosecute or accuse. You're just asking questions and may want to talk to this witness again.
  The area where the accident occurred should remain secured and off limits to everyone other than investigative personnel so they can inspect the scene as it was immediately after the accident occurred. All physical evidence should also be secured, examined and photographed.
  
  

Finding the Cause

• The purpose of an accident investigation is not to assess blame, but to find the cause so it can be corrected. After determining the cause, the events leading up to the accident must be reconstructed. That will allow for the determination of an indirect cause, in which unsafe conditions led to the accident, or a direct cause, in which individual actions were responsible. Every detail, no matter how small, must be considered. Conclusions must be based on facts. Reports are given to supervisors, who no doubt will ask questions about the findings. Be prepared, and have answers to every possible question.
  
  

The Results

• Once all data, including interviews, photos, drawings and maps, have been evaluated and a determination has been made, a final report must be presented and corrective action should be taken immediately. That could include the simple retraining of personnel, which may warrant the re-editing of safety manuals and training guides. Or it could call for the costly removal and replacement of equipment.