¶ … fire investigation. The writer explores some of the challenges that fire investigations face as well as some of the methods used to overcome those challenges. There were four sources used to complete this paper. Decisions in fire investigations have the power to impact many aspects of life. The decisions in a fire investigation can make the difference between insurance payouts, cause of death issues, and criminal charges or accident charges being filed. The work of fire investigation is complicated, technical and intuition all mixed together to create an ability to determine the cause of a blaze.

Fire investigation can be extremely complicated for several reasons (Walker, 2002). Often times the damage impedes the ability to process evidence. In addition there are sometimes underlying pieces of evidence that have to be pieced together for the purpose of finding a cause of a fire.

There are many steps to be taken in each fire investigation that can piece together the puzzle (CASE Management TECHNIQUES

for MAJOR FIRE LOSSES http://www.interfire.org/features/casemanagement.asp).

While fires are caused by many things under many difference circumstances the basics of fire investigations remain constant.

The Steps

"During the investigative process, there are five logical points for the investigator to take a time out and mentally review the activities completed to date. This pause allows the investigator to ensure that nothing has been forgotten and that the plan is in place to proceed to the next step. The logical "time out for review" points are (Before the Fire: A Checklist by: Cathleen Corbitt http://www.interfire.org/features/beforethefire_checklist.asp):

"Prior to responding to the call

After the preliminary scene assessment, but before the scene is processed

After the scene is processed and before releasing it back to the owner

It is through the inclusion of the stakeholders that the investigator can be sure of catching as much evidence as possible.
"While the details of every scene will be different, the basic approach to the fire investigation should be consistent and follow a pre-determined plan. When there is an established plan and clearly defined roles, it will be simpler to evaluate the available investigative resources and plug them into the protocol (Before the Fire: A Checklist by: Cathleen Corbitt http://www.interfire.org/features/beforethefire_checklist.asp)."

Creating a plan is the basic blueprint of fire investigation.

There are several necessary steps to creating a plan for fire investigation. They include:

"identify and bring together all agencies with an interest in the fire investigation.

Define the mission and the task at hand and build relationships among these entities.

Work as a team to define the roles of all agencies involved in fire response and the duties of the personnel from those agencies.

The team should then define the standard operating procedure for response to the fire call and rehearse this response from 911 call through arrest (Before the Fire: A Checklist by: Cathleen Corbitt http://www.interfire.org/features/beforethefire_checklist.asp)."

Fire investigation sometimes requires nothing more than the training and knowledge of the investigator. At other times it requires the use of outside personnel and sources. A professional and competent fire investigator knows when…