Presented by: Donald L. Trussell DEP Safety Program Administrator 850-488-0878 or SC 278-0878

1. Presented by: Donald L. Trussell DEP Safety Program Administrator 850-488-0878 or SC 278-0878

2. ACCIDENT INVESTIGATION “The Basics”

3. Introduction • BABYLONIAN LAW • WHY PRACTICE SAFETY? • SAFETY EXCELLENCE

4. SAFETY CULTURE • CULTURE • PARK SAFETY CULTURE • WAY OF LIFE • TEAMWORK/PARTNERSHIP

5. RISK • DEFINITION • IDENTIFY POTENTIAL PROBLEMS

6. Responsibility/Accountability • BASIC CONCEPT • MEASURE PERFORMANCE • ACCOUNTABILITY: • Put the “I” back in

7. ACCIDENTS • DON’T JUST HAPPEN • ARE THE LEADING CAUSE OF DEATH • RESULT OF UNSAFE OR SUBSTANDARD ACTS AND CONDITIONS

8. ACCIDENTS/INCIDENTS • ACCIDENTS ARE INCIDENTS • HAVE THE POTENTIAL TO HARM • SHOULD ALWAYS BE INVESTIGATED

9. What is an accident? An accident is………..????

10. An accident is: • Unwanted • Unplanned • Unforeseen • Disruptive • Can be major or minor

11. Is an accident and an injury the same thing? NO!

12. Obvious Injury Costs • Insurance Premiums • Medical Expenses • Worker Compensation • Rest of work crew “takes up the slack” • Accident Cost Iceberg

13. Hidden Injury Costs • Lost time at work • Reduced or lost income • Pain and suffering • Possibly having to learn a new job • Training costs to the company • Administrative costs (Investigation, ES&H, HR)

14. Actions vs. Attitudes Which is easier to see and report?

15. Actions vs. Attitudes • Which is easier to change?

16. What we would like to see…. • That you understand why people do the things they do. • That you know there are many factors that cause an accident. • But mostly………That you look deeply into why accidents happen!

17. Why do we investigate?? • Prove the victim was at fault? …..no • CYA …….no • Avoid law suits against the company….no • Try to make the work place safer!!

18. Accident Investigation =An opportunity to change the work climate by correcting unsafe conditions, procedures, or actions.

19. Elements of the Investigation • Describe who was involved • Describe what happened • Establish a time line • Determine location of accident & all factors • Establish a chain of events to understand how the accident occurred • Determine the cause & root cause

20. First Goals of the Investigation Establish the following: 1. Who 2. What 3. When 4. Where 5. How 6. Why

21. Who Establish the person(s) who were involved in the accident, including witnesses. This includes all persons and not just an injured employee.

22. What Describe in detail what happened.

23. When Ensure times and dates are included in the statements.

24. Where Get specific about the location, to include what Site, what facility, road name, etc.

25. How Make sure your description of the incident is clear and describes the factors that caused the accident.

26. Why Based on who/what/when/where/& how, you should be able to piece together why the accident happened. This involves piecing information together to form a conclusion of the cause & root cause of the accident.

27. Drawing Conclusions From the who/what/when/where/how & why that you just gathered, you now need to determine both the cause and root cause of the accident.

28. “All things are hidden, obscure, and debatable if the cause of the phenomena be unknown, but everything is clear if this cause be known.”Louis Pasture

29. Cause of the Accident The “cause” of the accident should describe what the immediate symptoms are of the accident. Example: An employee slipped on the floor because there was spilled coffee that made the floor slippery.

30. Root Cause The “root cause” of the accident is the basic underlying reason, not always apparent, that caused the accident. Example: The root cause of the accident was that the person who spilled the coffee did not clean it up or establish a warning method to alert others of a hazard.

31. Casual Factors Incident • Precedes The loss • Slip, Trip, Fall • Loss Causation

32. Causal FactorsBasic Causes • THE DISEASE • THIS IS THE “WHY” IT HAPPENED • PEOPLE, EQUIPMENT, MATERIALS, ENVIRONMENT • PERSONAL & JOB FACTORS

33. Causal FactorsLack of Control • STARTS THE SEQUENCE • 3 WAYS TO GAIN CONTROL: • PROGRAM • STANDARDS • COMPLIANCE

34. Multiple SourceCauses-Controls • CHAIN • 90/10 RULE • 3 STAGES OF CONTROL: • PRE-CONTACT • CONTACT • POST CONTACT

35. So how do I use this information when an accident occurs? ? ? ? ?

36. Begin Your Investigation • Get the affected person’s statement. • Get onlookers’ statements. • Note the positions of people and things. • Gather other information as needed, like manuals, records of training, safety, and maintenance. • Get pictures when needed (picture worth 1000 words)

37. Interview Tips • Need information - not placing blame. • Try to form open ended, non-judgmental questions. • Ask as many questions as it takes to clarify your understanding.

38. Begin Your Written Report Gather all of your facts previously obtained, in particular who/what/when/where/how/why, and the cause/root cause of the accident. Additionally, gather written statements, information on similar incidents, and pictures to support your position when needed.

39. Example of Fact GatheringOn July 29, 1999, on or about 10:45 am, Joe Employee was stacking concrete blocks and walked into a piece of steel re-enforcing bar that was protruding out of the end of the pipe storage shelving unit located inside the Project Materials compound, striking him in the face. A 1” cut was received across the middle of Mr. Employee’s forehead. He proceeded directly to the dispensary, where he received 4 sutures to close the laceration, then was released at 11:41am in a full duty status. He went to lunch, then informed his immediate supervisor of the incident upon returning to work at 12:30.

40. Your Conclusions:Cause: The accident was caused by Joe not paying attention to his surroundings and striking his head on the rebar.Root Cause #1: Somebody didn’t properly store the rebar and left it in a haphazard state that was obviously unsafe.Root Cause #2: The supervisor has not been taking responsibility for his work area by monitoring for unsafe conditions.

41. So Now What? At this point you have gathered facts, interviews, pictures, and all pertinent information. You have made conclusions and determined what the cause and root cause of the accident was. Question: What do you do with this information?

42. Corrective Action You take corrective action that would prevent the reoccurrence of this type of injury in the future, such as: 1. You look around for similar things in your work center that would present the same type of hazard and implement corrective action. Examples: pipe storage, lumber storage, conduit storage, etc. 2. You should counsel the work center supervisor on proper storage methods and his responsibilities.

43. Finish Your Written Report Now write your conclusions (cause & root cause) in your report, and finally wrap up your report by a “Corrective Actions Taken” paragraph. Attach all supporting documentation to the back of the report. You are now done with your written report.

44. To Recap Your Investigation • Who/what/when/where/how/why • Conclusions (cause & root cause) • Corrective Actions Taken

45. Uses of the Report 1. Toolbox Talks/Departmental Training 2. Use your written report to complete the Supervisor’s Accident Investigation Report

46. Supervisor’s Accident Investigation Report Now that you have completed your written report, you are finally ready to complete the Supervisor’s Accident Investigation Report. This piece of paper is merely a standardized form to document your accident investigation. Filling out the form before doing an investigation is putting the cart before the horse and does not constitute an investigation.

47. Why Investigate All Accidents and not just Injuries? Because for every Serious Injury, there are: Fatality 10 minor injuries 30 property damages 600 near misses So where should you be looking?

48. Conclusion • ATTITUDE • AWARENESS • RESOURCES

49. That’s All Folks!