Don’t disturb the site of an incident
Once you've notified Workplace Health and Safety Queensland or the Electrical Safety Office of an incident, the next step is to make sure that the incident site isn't disturbed.
Why must I make sure an incident site isn't disturbed?
An inspector or police officer may need to investigate the site where an incident has happened. Therefore, you must make sure that an incident site isn't disturbed until an inspector arrives. This is to protect evidence that may help determine the cause of an incident.
However, you can disturb an incident site if it’s to:
- help a person with an injury
- remove a deceased person
- make the site safe or to minimise the risk of a further notifiable incident
- assist with a police investigation.
Requirements to make sure an incident site isn't disturbed only apply to the area where an incident happened, not your whole place of work. If you're unsure about what you need to do, you can call us on 1300 362 128 for advice. If it's outside of business hours, an on-call inspector will return your call.
You should also call us on 1300 362 128 if an incident happens at your place of work and you wish to disturb the incident site. An inspector may give you permission to disturb an incident site over the phone or in person.
It’s an offence to interfere with the site of an incident without permission of an inspector or police officer. Penalties apply if you don’t make sure an incident site isn’t disturbed until an inspector arrives.
Learn more about penalties.