1. Presented by: Guy Prescott Common Sense Safety, Inc. (530) 470-8322
Initial Site Investigation
Lesson 7
Introduce Presenter
The accident site can be any time of year, any condition, and almost anywhere.
A quick response to the site is of the utmost importance second only to arriving safety.

2. Initial Site Investigation
Presented by: Guy Prescott Common Sense Safety, Inc (530)
Initial Site Investigation
Introduce Presenter
The accident site can be any time of year, any condition, and almost anywhere.
A quick response to the site is of the utmost importance second only to arriving safety.

3. Initial Site Investigation Lesson 7 Objectives
Presented by: Guy Prescott Common Sense Safety, Inc (530)
Understand the significance of the initial site investigation.
Prepare the team with the necessary equipment and information for a safe and successful site survey.
Conduct the initial survey and determine how it should be approached by the team.
Control the accident site to help ensure that evidence is not disturbed so it can be collected and documented correctly.
Introduce Presenter
The accident site can be any time of year, any condition, and almost anywhere.
A quick response to the site is of the utmost importance second only to arriving safety.

4. Initial Site Investigation
Presented by: Guy Prescott Common Sense Safety, Inc (530)
before we get started. . .
What do you expect to get from it?
What should you be aware of?
What should you be cautious about?
Who should enter the site?
How important is the visit?
Introduce Presenter
The accident site can be any time of year, any condition, and almost anywhere.
A quick response to the site is of the utmost importance second only to arriving safety.

5. Presented by: Guy Prescott Common Sense Safety, Inc. (530) 470-8322
Successful Visit
#1 Rule - Arrive Safely!
Before you get there things to think about include:
(Ask the class these questions.)
Are you or your team members ever going to be the first ones at the scene?
Who has been there already?
Has the scene been secured?
Who secured the scene?
What did they secure it from?
People getting in?
Wildlife?
Nature, weather, fire, and other elements?
Have things been moved?
What has been disturbed?
Rescue efforts, fire, air drops, wind, etc.
What do you know about the conditions of the scene?
What are you getting into going to the scene?
Has it been secured just to keep unauthorized people out or has it been secured with safety of the investigation team in mind?
What additional things need to be done before you and your team enter the accident area?
Has your safety been thought through?
First Priority:
Prevent further loss of life, injury, or property loss. (This includes you!)

6. Presented by: Guy Prescott Common Sense Safety, Inc. (530) 470-8322
Site Controls
The accident site must be secured and safety hazards identified or mitigated prior to entering or visiting the site.
Before you get there things to think about include:
(Ask the class these questions.)
Are you or your team members ever going to be the first ones at the scene?
Who has been there already?
Has the scene been secured?
Who secured the scene?
What did they secure it from?
People getting in?
Wildlife?
Nature, weather, fire, and other elements?
Have things been moved?
What has been disturbed?
Rescue efforts, fire, air drops, wind, etc.
What do you know about the conditions of the scene?
What are you getting into going to the scene?
Has it been secured just to keep unauthorized people out or has it been secured with safety of the investigation team in mind?
What additional things need to be done before you and your team enter the accident area?
Has your safety been thought through?

9. Presented by: Guy Prescott Common Sense Safety, Inc. (530) 470-8322
Site Controls
Presented by: Guy Prescott Common Sense Safety, Inc (530)
Contact agency or local law enforcement to ensure that any available preliminary investigation information and/or special interest in the incident are known.
Before you get there things to think about include:
(Ask the class these questions.)
Are you or your team members ever going to be the first ones at the scene?
Who has been there already?
Has the scene been secured?
Who secured the scene?
What did they secure it from?
People getting in?
Wildlife?
Nature, weather, fire, and other elements?
Have things been moved?
What has been disturbed?
Rescue efforts, fire, air drops, wind, etc.
What do you know about the conditions of the scene?
What are you getting into going to the scene?
Has it been secured just to keep unauthorized people out or has it been secured with safety of the investigation team in mind?
What additional things need to be done before you and your team enter the accident area?
Has your safety been thought through?

10. Initial Site Investigation
Presented by: Guy Prescott Common Sense Safety, Inc (530)
Initial Site Investigation
Any site security procedures that had been established prior to the SAIT arrival should be understood and the Team Leader should coordinate with the Agency Administrator for continued site security as necessary.
Before you get there things to think about include:
(Ask the class these questions.)
Are you or your team members ever going to be the first ones at the scene?
Who has been there already?
Has the scene been secured?
Who secured the scene?
What did they secure it from?
People getting in?
Wildlife?
Nature, weather, fire, and other elements?
Have things been moved?
What has been disturbed?
Rescue efforts, fire, air drops, wind, etc.
What do you know about the conditions of the scene?
What are you getting into going to the scene?
Has it been secured just to keep unauthorized people out or has it been secured with safety of the investigation team in mind?
What additional things need to be done before you and your team enter the accident area?
Has your safety been thought through?

11. Presented by: Guy Prescott Common Sense Safety, Inc. (530) 470-8322
Site Controls
Presented by: Guy Prescott Common Sense Safety, Inc (530)
The entire accident site needs to be controlled and the evidence protected until it is released back to the unit by the Chief Investigator.
Before you get there things to think about include:
(Ask the class these questions.)
Are you or your team members ever going to be the first ones at the scene?
Who has been there already?
Has the scene been secured?
Who secured the scene?
What did they secure it from?
People getting in?
Wildlife?
Nature, weather, fire, and other elements?
Have things been moved?
What has been disturbed?
Rescue efforts, fire, air drops, wind, etc.
What do you know about the conditions of the scene?
What are you getting into going to the scene?
Has it been secured just to keep unauthorized people out or has it been secured with safety of the investigation team in mind?
What additional things need to be done before you and your team enter the accident area?
Has your safety been thought through?

12. Presented by: Guy Prescott Common Sense Safety, Inc. (530) 470-8322
Site Controls
Presented by: Guy Prescott Common Sense Safety, Inc (530)
Contact agency or local law enforcement to ensure that any available preliminary investigation information and/or special interest in the incident are known.
If there is evidence that may be easily disturbed the chief investigator and team leader should consider controlling access.
Controlling the accident site. People not assigned to the SAIT or not invited to the site should be prohibited from entering by the Chief Investigator.
Before you get there things to think about include:
(Ask the class these questions.)
Are you or your team members ever going to be the first ones at the scene?
Who has been there already?
Has the scene been secured?
Who secured the scene?
What did they secure it from?
People getting in?
Wildlife?
Nature, weather, fire, and other elements?
Have things been moved?
What has been disturbed?
Rescue efforts, fire, air drops, wind, etc.
What do you know about the conditions of the scene?
What are you getting into going to the scene?
Has it been secured just to keep unauthorized people out or has it been secured with safety of the investigation team in mind?
What additional things need to be done before you and your team enter the accident area?
Has your safety been thought through?

13. Initial Site Investigation Initial Site Investigation
Presented by: Guy Prescott Common Sense Safety, Inc (530)
Initial Site Investigation Initial Site Investigation
Let’s look at handout 7-1, the
Initial Site Investigation Checklist
Before you get there things to think about include:
(Ask the class these questions.)
Are you or your team members ever going to be the first ones at the scene?
Who has been there already?
Has the scene been secured?
Who secured the scene?
What did they secure it from?
People getting in?
Wildlife?
Nature, weather, fire, and other elements?
Have things been moved?
What has been disturbed?
Rescue efforts, fire, air drops, wind, etc.
What do you know about the conditions of the scene?
What are you getting into going to the scene?
Has it been secured just to keep unauthorized people out or has it been secured with safety of the investigation team in mind?
What additional things need to be done before you and your team enter the accident area?
Has your safety been thought through?

14. Approaching the Accident Site
Presented by: Guy Prescott Common Sense Safety, Inc (530)
Approaching the Accident Site
Prepare equipment and people
Use the Checklist we just reviewed!
Approached the site as the workers did
Before you get there things to think about include:
(Ask the class these questions.)
Are you or your team members ever going to be the first ones at the scene?
Who has been there already?
Has the scene been secured?
Who secured the scene?
What did they secure it from?
People getting in?
Wildlife?
Nature, weather, fire, and other elements?
Have things been moved?
What has been disturbed?
Rescue efforts, fire, air drops, wind, etc.
What do you know about the conditions of the scene?
What are you getting into going to the scene?
Has it been secured just to keep unauthorized people out or has it been secured with safety of the investigation team in mind?
What additional things need to be done before you and your team enter the accident area?
Has your safety been thought through?
STOP
. . .and view the entire scene

15. Initial Site Investigation At the Site
Presented by: Guy Prescott Common Sense Safety, Inc (530)
Approach the site slowly and deliberately
Get an overall look at the accident area before more evidence is disturbed.
Landscape features, shadows, roadways, space allocation, type/location of equipment and people, etc., should all be looked at from a distance to help establish the overall complexity of the scene or workplace.
Try to get the overall picture of what was going on
Established the flow and main task of the work.
Establish where the impact or contact that caused the injury or damage occurred.
Start to think about what evidence you want to gather first.
If there is evidence that may be easily disturbed, only the chief investigator and team leader should enter the area.
Before you get there things to think about include:
(Ask the class these questions.)
Are you or your team members ever going to be the first ones at the scene?
Who has been there already?
Has the scene been secured?
Who secured the scene?
What did they secure it from?
People getting in?
Wildlife?
Nature, weather, fire, and other elements?
Have things been moved?
What has been disturbed?
Rescue efforts, fire, air drops, wind, etc.
What do you know about the conditions of the scene?
What are you getting into going to the scene?
Has it been secured just to keep unauthorized people out or has it been secured with safety of the investigation team in mind?
What additional things need to be done before you and your team enter the accident area?
Has your safety been thought through?

16. Initial Site Investigation At the Site
Presented by: Guy Prescott Common Sense Safety, Inc (530)
Initial Site Investigation At the Site
Attempt to establish the conditions at the time of the accident.
It’s helpful to review the accident site at the same time of day that the accident happened.
Take into consideration the weather or other environmental conditions that may have been in play at the time of the accident.
The extent of the accident site.
The physical dimensions should be established and the boundaries identified and marked if necessary.
Before you get there things to think about include:
(Ask the class these questions.)
Are you or your team members ever going to be the first ones at the scene?
Who has been there already?
Has the scene been secured?
Who secured the scene?
What did they secure it from?
People getting in?
Wildlife?
Nature, weather, fire, and other elements?
Have things been moved?
What has been disturbed?
Rescue efforts, fire, air drops, wind, etc.
What do you know about the conditions of the scene?
What are you getting into going to the scene?
Has it been secured just to keep unauthorized people out or has it been secured with safety of the investigation team in mind?
What additional things need to be done before you and your team enter the accident area?
Has your safety been thought through?

17. Initial Site Investigation At the Site
Presented by: Guy Prescott Common Sense Safety, Inc (530)
The description of the site needs to be prepared very carefully at the site to ensure that it is accurate and well defined:
drawings, photographs, historical records, etc., all may prove useful
Before you get there things to think about include:
(Ask the class these questions.)
Are you or your team members ever going to be the first ones at the scene?
Who has been there already?
Has the scene been secured?
Who secured the scene?
What did they secure it from?
People getting in?
Wildlife?
Nature, weather, fire, and other elements?
Have things been moved?
What has been disturbed?
Rescue efforts, fire, air drops, wind, etc.
What do you know about the conditions of the scene?
What are you getting into going to the scene?
Has it been secured just to keep unauthorized people out or has it been secured with safety of the investigation team in mind?
What additional things need to be done before you and your team enter the accident area?
Has your safety been thought through?

18. Initial Site Investigation
Presented by: Guy Prescott Common Sense Safety, Inc (530)
Initial Site Investigation
The Chief Investigator has control of the accident site and the accident site should be approached slowly getting the overall picture of what was going on and what the conditions were at the time of the accident.
The Chief Investigator will establish:
Who needs to go to the accident site
What main tasks need to be done
Order in which tasks should be done
Who will do tasks
The extent of the site
Site security and entry requirements, if any
Initial description and mapping of the site
Photographs of everything before they are touched
Collection of evidence
Logging of evidence and photographs- Anything taken from the accident site needs to be logged in on the evidence log so the chain of custody is established

19. Initial Site Investigation Contamination Of The Site
Presented by: Guy Prescott Common Sense Safety, Inc (530)
Initial Site Investigation Contamination Of The Site
The Chief Investigator should always consider the likelihood that the site has been disturbed when considering the position of evidence.
If the site has been disturbed, witnesses should be used to determine how the site looked at the time of the incident or how it typically looks during a similar operation.

20. Initial Site Investigation Reality Check
Presented by: Guy Prescott Common Sense Safety, Inc (530)
Are you or your team members ever going to be the first ones at the scene?
Was the scene secured before you arrived?
Have things been moved?
Before you get there things to think about include:
(Ask the class these questions.)
Are you or your team members ever going to be the first ones at the scene?
Who has been there already?
Has the scene been secured?
Who secured the scene?
What did they secure it from?
People getting in?
Wildlife?
Nature, weather, fire, and other elements?
Have things been moved?
What has been disturbed?
Rescue efforts, fire, air drops, wind, etc.
What do you know about the conditions of the scene?
What are you getting into going to the scene?
Has it been secured just to keep unauthorized people out or has it been secured with safety of the investigation team in mind?
What additional things need to be done before you and your team enter the accident area?
Has your safety been thought through?

21. Initial Site Investigation
Be prepared
Be deliberate
Be thorough
Be cautious

22. Questions???
Initial Site Investigation

23. Initial Site Investigation Lesson 7 Objectives
Presented by: Guy Prescott Common Sense Safety, Inc (530)
Understand the significance of the initial site investigation.
Prepare the team with the necessary equipment and information for a safe and successful site survey.
Conduct the initial survey and determine how it should be approached by the team.
Control the accident site to help ensure that evidence is not disturbed so it can be collected and documented correctly.
Introduce Presenter
The accident site can be any time of year, any condition, and almost anywhere.
A quick response to the site is of the utmost importance second only to arriving safety.