Which term describes a procedure carried out to gather data about an event?

• A. Failure
• B. Load
• C. Investigation
• D. Fault

Answer: (C)

The term describes a procedure carried out to gather data about an event is investigation. An investigation is a systematic process of collecting, documenting, and analyzing evidence from a site, witness statements, measurements, tests, and records to understand what happened and why. In a bridge collapse scenario, investigators examine the site, review design and maintenance histories, test materials, and analyze data to reconstruct the sequence of events and identify contributing factors. The other terms don’t fit because a failure is an outcome of a breakdown, a fault is a deficiency in a component or system, and a load is the force acting on the structure—none of these describe the data-collection process involved in understanding an event.