The students working at Tai during this period had been informed by the director of the Swiss Center for Scientific Research that it was of high risk to undertake autopsies. They decided, however, that they would do all that was needed to find out what killed the chimpanzees. Therefore, when they found the fresh body of an infant female they conducted an autopsy, wearing gloves and being as careful as possible. It was this courageous decision which later allowed the identification of the virus. One is never optimally prepared in the field to correctly handle all possible emergencies.
Many mistakes can happen due to all sorts of circumstances.
It is also not an easy task to dissect an individual you have been following for weeks or months. The students certainly did the best they could. No one had veterinary training, but one student assisted by the other two managed to take samples from most vital organs. While the analyses of material from the dead chimpanzees went on Ch. Boesch tried to take blood from some of the survivors and became aware of the dangers of taking such actions without sufficient preparation.