Part detective, scientist, engineer, and law enforcement officer, the fire investigator represents the collusion of multiple careers in one. It is the fire investigator who must explore, determine and document the origin and cause of the fire, establish what human actions were responsible for it, and then bring authorized testimony to the courtroom to obtain a conviction in arson cases.
“This is not a job for a lazy man,” says Paul Horgan, an accelerator detection canine handler and state trooper assigned to the Massachusetts State Fire Marshal’s Office. “You have to be conscientious and have a mind that likes to figure things out. You really can’t take shortcuts. You have to take your own pictures, collect the evidence, follow up the investigations. In arson cases, you have to find the criminal. “
Although many people use the terms “arson investigator” and “arson investigator” interchangeably, they are not the same, says Special Agent Steve Carman, CFI at the Sacramento field office of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms. (ATF). An arson investigator will try to determine who is responsible for setting the fire; a fire investigator will attempt to determine the cause and origin of a fire. Most of the time, fire investigators are also arson investigators, says Agent Carman, who was an ATF arson investigator for four years before becoming a fire investigator and served on the Western National Response Team. of the ATF for nine years. “Often times, arson investigators can be a police officer or ATF agent who does not have the background to conduct a fire investigation, an area that is increasingly drawing on the science and engineering of fire behavior. fire, “says Special Agent Carman. Fire investigation work is complex, challenging, and intriguing, requiring a wide range of skills to perform effectively. Each fire investigator has a personal perspective on the skills that are most needed.
“Experience in mechanical, electrical, civil and even chemical engineering plays an important role,” says Robert Duval, senior fire researcher with the National Fire Protection Association. “You’re looking at something that was destroyed and you have to be able to put it back together mentally or physically to determine the origin and cause. Technical training plays an important role in determining many of the factors in terms of fire behavior and how it attacked. the structure you’re looking at, whether it’s an appliance, a piece of equipment, or a building. “
This technical aspect of the job requires knowledge of the construction and materials of buildings and the effects of fire on those materials. Test preservation methods, fire suppression effects, fire behavior, and burning patterns are also important technical aspects. Search techniques should also be learned so that evidence of the cause of the fire and ignition sources is preserved during the investigation.
However, it’s important not to get bogged down in the technicalities of the investigation at the expense of the human component, suggests fire investigator Paul Zipper, who works in the Massachusetts Office of the State Fire Marshal. “I have made between 300 and 400 arrests of people who have started fires. Usually there is a fight, an incident and it is the interview that will tell you what happened. This is how cases are solved.”
Consider two separate fires, both originating in a trash can under a sink. In the first, someone emptied an ashtray into the can and lit a fire with burned ashes. In the second, someone struck a match and tossed it in the trash in hopes of collecting an insurance claim for damages. “Both fires started in a garbage can,” says Zipper. “But I challenge anyone to tell me how that fire started. If you can interview well and learn to read people, and mix that with diagrams, research, photography and report writing, you will be a good fire investigator.”
While not all fire investigators are experienced in law enforcement, many do. Investigators in New York State are fire chiefs who are fully empowered police officers (some “fire chiefs” are fire service personnel who have received police training and are sworn in as “law enforcement officers”). . In Connecticut, “local fire chiefs” are usually members of local fire departments or work under the municipal government and receive basic training on code enforcement and origin and cause, but they have no enforcement powers! the law! Who is a “fire marshal” can vary too much from place to place to make a general statement. There are local (FD or PD), state (State Fire Marshal), and federal (Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms) fire investigators. Except for ATF, where all certified fire investigators are ATF officers, the rest of the system may vary. In New England and several other states, state police officers serve as fire investigators on behalf of the Office of the State Fire Marshal. Because fire investigators must follow due process of law on matters such as evidence gathering, search and seizure, questioning and testimony in court, police or criminal justice training is extremely helpful.
How to get there
Fire investigators can work in the public or private sector. Generally, public sector employees are municipalities, fire or police departments, and state and federal agencies. Those who work in the private sector may be employed by insurance companies, lawyers or private source and cause firms or organizations such as the National Fire Protection Association. In some states, the local fire marshal has jurisdiction over the location of the fire and is ultimately responsible for determining the source and cause of a fire, says Robert Corry, fire investigation specialist for American Re-Insurance Company. . There are 26,354 fire departments in the US The fire marshal may have a fire investigator on staff. However, in some smaller communities, it may be the boss himself. Depending on the severity of the case, the fire marshal or investigator may call in more experienced federal, state, or county investigators. “A prudent investigator will not try to work alone, but will use a team approach,” says Corry.
The career path to becoming a fire investigator can be as complex and varied as the job itself. Fire investigators working in the public sector generally rise through the ranks, starting as employees or volunteers within the fire or police departments, gaining experience in various aspects of fire behavior, as well as criminal law and sometimes , in his spare time, pursuing formal studies. and training. These fire investigators may work within a municipal, county, or state office. Nationwide, ATF employs approximately 80 certified fire investigators who are typically called in to assist with state and local investigations of large fire scenes. ATF investigators first serve as ATF special agents and are then selected to undergo a rigorous two-year training program in fire investigation. Some receive advanced training in highly specialized research aspects such as computer modeling, fire sprinkler systems, and fire growth.
Those seeking employment in the private sector may come from the public sector, or they may pursue an academic curriculum in fire science or engineering, such as those offered by the University of New Haven, the University of Maryland, the State of Oklahoma, or the Worcester Polytechnic Institute. . If you’re in college right now, engineering, forensics, and photography courses are helpful. After graduation, you can search for job openings within entry-level insurance or research firms, and then try to move up. Or, you might consider volunteering at your local fire station to gain a foothold in the public sector.
Virtually all fire investigators will tell you to be actively involved in as many professional organizations as possible. Training is available at the federal level from the ATF, FBI, and the International Association of Arson Investigators (IAAI), and at the state level from the state police and the Office of the Fire Marshal, as well as from various local agencies. Trooper Horgan says investigators in his state usually join professional organizations and then begin attending some of the trainings offered by police departments on basic arson investigation, attending the National Academy’s two-week training program. Fire Department in Maryland and begin to try to accumulate credentials. and a resume. Chris Porreca, Arson Explosives Group Group Supervisor for ATF’s Boston Field Division, agrees that a high degree of self-motivation is required to pursue a career in fire investigation. “We asked applicants if they worked on fire scenes, signed up for and attended conferences at the local, state and national levels, and took the initiative to become State Certified Fire Investigators (CFI) to gain experience and knowledge.” , He says. Before becoming an ATF fire investigator, Porreca was certified by New York State for fire investigation, which, he said, demonstrated to the ATF his desire to get out there and learn the required skills on his own. “It takes long hours and many weekends to do your job, and then do this too.”
While the race has always been challenging, it has been even more so in recent years. “The arsonist is getting more sophisticated,” says Trooper Horgan. “More fires are being set up to try to trick investigators into looking accidental when intentional. This makes our job that much more difficult and requires you to be an even more competent investigator to solve the case.”