"Incident Response Checklist: First 24 Hours"

The first 24 hours after a workplace incident determine everything. The quality of medical care. The integrity of your investigation. Your regulatory compliance. Your legal exposure. Your employees' trust in your safety program.

And yet — this is the window when most employers improvise. Someone gets hurt, and suddenly it's chaos. Nobody knows who to call first. Nobody knows where the incident report form is. Nobody knows whether this triggers a Cal/OSHA notification. Evidence gets contaminated. Witnesses scatter. And by the time someone pulls out the procedures manual three days later, the opportunity for a credible investigation is gone.

This checklist eliminates the improvisation. Print it. Post it. Train your supervisors on it. When an incident happens, follow it step by step.

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Hour 0: Immediate Response (First 15 Minutes)

These actions happen simultaneously or in rapid sequence. Every second matters.

Life Safety — Always First

[ ] **Assess the scene for ongoing danger.** Is the hazard still active? Falling objects, exposed electrical, chemical release, fire, aggressive person — ensure no one else can be injured.
[ ] **Remove ongoing hazards if safe to do so.** De-energize equipment, shut off chemical lines, block traffic. Only if you can do so without putting yourself or others at risk.
[ ] **Provide immediate first aid.** Trained first-aid responder to the injured person. Control bleeding, stabilize injuries, begin CPR/AED if needed.
[ ] **Call 911 if injuries are serious.** Don't hesitate. Don't downplay. If there's any question about severity, call. Provide the exact address and meet EMS at the entrance.
[ ] **Move non-essential personnel away from the scene.** Clear the area to allow care and preserve evidence.

Scene Preservation

[ ] **Isolate the incident area.** Use barriers, caution tape, cones, or posted personnel. No one enters except emergency responders and authorized investigators.
[ ] **Do NOT clean up, repair, or move anything.** The scene is evidence. Equipment stays where it is. Debris stays where it is. Fluids stay where they are (unless they pose an immediate hazard).
[ ] **Secure security camera footage.** If cameras cover the area, immediately ensure footage is preserved. Many systems overwrite on short cycles — act within the hour or lose it.

Initial Notification

[ ] **Notify the supervisor** (if not already present).
[ ] **Notify the safety officer or IIPP program administrator.**
[ ] **Notify senior management** per your notification chain.
[ ] **Notify HR** (for workers' compensation and employee communications).

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Hours 0-1: Assessment and Regulatory Notification

Severity Assessment

Determine whether this incident triggers mandatory Cal/OSHA notification.

[ ] **Is this a fatality?** If yes: Cal/OSHA notification required within **8 hours**. Call the nearest District Office or the after-hours number at (800) 321-OSHA.
[ ] **Is this a serious injury or illness?** Hospitalization for more than 24 hours for observation, amputation, or loss of an eye, or serious degree of permanent disfigurement? If yes: Cal/OSHA notification required within **8 hours**.
[ ] **Document the notification.** Record who you called, the phone number, the time of the call, the name of the person you spoke with, and any case number assigned.

Cal/OSHA Notification Must Include:

[ ] Time and date of incident
[ ] Employer name, address, and phone number
[ ] Name and job title of person reporting
[ ] Address of incident site
[ ] Name of injured employee
[ ] Nature of injury or illness
[ ] Location where injured employee was moved to (hospital name)
[ ] Description of the incident
[ ] Name and phone number of contact person

Workers' Compensation

[ ] **File a First Report of Injury** with your workers' compensation carrier. Most states require this within 24 hours of knowledge of a work-related injury.
[ ] **Provide the employee with a workers' comp claim form.** In California, you must provide DWC-1 within one working day of learning of the injury.
[ ] **Direct the employee to authorized medical provider.** Know your MPN (Medical Provider Network) or occupational health clinic before an incident happens.

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Hours 1-4: Evidence Collection

Do this while the scene is fresh and unchanged. Memories fade. Evidence degrades. Act now.

Photographic Documentation

[ ] **Wide-angle context photos.** Show the overall scene and surroundings from multiple angles.
[ ] **Medium-range photos.** Show the specific area where the incident occurred, with reference to surrounding landmarks.
[ ] **Close-up detail photos.** Point of contact, equipment involved, floor conditions, labels, warning signs, damage, measurements (include a ruler or known-size object for scale).
[ ] **Equipment state photos.** Control positions, gauge readings, warning indicators, safety device status (guards in place or removed, lockout devices applied or not).
[ ] **Environmental condition photos.** Lighting levels, weather conditions, housekeeping state, signage.
[ ] **PPE photos.** PPE worn by the injured employee — condition, type, fit, any damage. Also photograph PPE that should have been worn but wasn't.

Witness Identification

[ ] **List every person present at or near the scene** at the time of the incident. Names, job titles, locations relative to the incident.
[ ] **Ask each witness to write a brief statement** while memory is fresh — what they saw, heard, and did. Keep witnesses separated to prevent group contamination of memories.
[ ] **Note anyone who left the scene** before you arrived. Track them down for statements.
[ ] **Schedule formal interviews** within 24 hours.

Physical Evidence

[ ] **Collect and tag any relevant items** that can be safely removed — broken equipment parts, defective PPE, chemical containers, tools.
[ ] **Take measurements.** Heights, distances, dimensions of relevant spaces or objects. Sketch the scene with measurements noted.
[ ] **Record environmental conditions.** Temperature, humidity, noise level, lighting level, wind speed (outdoor). Use instruments if available.
[ ] **Check equipment records.** Last maintenance date, last inspection, any known defects or outstanding work orders.

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Hours 4-8: Investigation Launch

Investigation Team Assembly

[ ] **Designate investigation lead.** Safety officer, supervisor, or trained investigator.
[ ] **Identify team members.** Subject matter experts if specialized knowledge is needed. Employee representative.
[ ] **Brief the team.** Share what's known so far. Distribute evidence collected. Assign interview responsibilities.

Witness Interviews

[ ] **Interview the injured employee** (if medically able and willing). Open-ended questions first: "Tell me what happened." Never accusatory.
[ ] **Interview direct witnesses** individually. Not in groups. In a private, comfortable setting.
[ ] **Interview indirect witnesses.** People who didn't see the incident but have relevant knowledge — coworkers who do the same task, maintenance personnel, supervisors.
[ ] **Document each interview.** Date, time, interviewer, interviewee, questions asked, responses given. Have the interviewee review and sign if possible.

Document Review

[ ] **Pull the written procedure** for the task being performed. Does one exist? Is it current?
[ ] **Pull training records** for the injured employee. Were they trained on this task? When? By whom?
[ ] **Pull inspection records** for the area/equipment. When was the last inspection? Were deficiencies noted?
[ ] **Pull maintenance records** for any equipment involved. Current on maintenance? Any outstanding repairs?
[ ] **Check prior incident history.** Has anything similar happened before? In this area? With this equipment? On this task?

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Hours 8-24: Analysis and Initial Corrective Actions

Root Cause Analysis

[ ] **Apply the 5 Whys.** Start with what happened and ask "why" at least five times to get past surface causes to systemic root causes.
[ ] **Identify all contributing factors.** Most incidents have multiple causes. Don't stop at the first one.
[ ] **Categorize causes.** Equipment failure? Procedure inadequacy? Training gap? Environmental condition? Management system failure?
[ ] **Document the analysis.** Show your work — the chain of causation from surface event to root cause.

Immediate Corrective Actions

[ ] **Address any hazards that could cause a repeat incident.** If the hazard is still present, correct it immediately or restrict access.
[ ] **Implement interim protective measures** if permanent correction will take time. Barriers, warning signs, modified procedures, additional PPE, restricted access.
[ ] **Communicate with affected employees.** Tell them what happened (appropriate level of detail), what you're doing about it, and what they need to do differently (if anything) until permanent corrections are in place.

Documentation

[ ] **Begin drafting the investigation report.** Include: incident description, evidence collected, interview summaries, root cause analysis, corrective actions (immediate and planned).
[ ] **Log the incident** in your OSHA 300 log if it meets recordability criteria (death, days away from work, restricted work, transfer, medical treatment beyond first aid, loss of consciousness, or significant injury/illness diagnosed by a physician).
[ ] **Log in the violent incident log** if this was a workplace violence incident (per SB 553).
[ ] **Update your incident tracking system** with status and next steps.

Employee Communication

[ ] **Update the injured employee** (or their family, if the employee is unable to communicate). What you know, what you're doing, what resources are available.
[ ] **Provide Employee Assistance Program (EAP) information** to affected employees, witnesses, and coworkers. Traumatic events affect more than the injured person.
[ ] **Address rumors proactively.** Communicate facts to prevent misinformation from filling the vacuum.

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Within 72 Hours: Follow-Up Actions

[ ] **Complete the investigation report.** Full report with all sections, attachments, and corrective action plan.
[ ] **Assign corrective actions.** Specific person, specific action, specific deadline for each item.
[ ] **Review and update your IIPP** if the investigation revealed gaps.
[ ] **Schedule follow-up training** if the investigation identified training deficiencies.
[ ] **File all documentation.** Investigation report, photos, witness statements, medical records (kept separate and confidential), regulatory notifications, workers' comp filings.

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Post this checklist where supervisors can grab it in 30 seconds. In the break room. In the supervisor's office. In the safety binder. On their phone.

Because when an incident happens, nobody has time to think about what to do. They need to know.