The Behavior of the Fire during the Outbreak - Essay Example

NAME: xxxxxxxxxx TUTOR: xxxxxxxxx DATE: xxxxxxxxxx ©2015 Introduction Fire outbreaks, more often than not, result in tremendous loss of property and some cases even human lives. Over the course of most urban civilizations, the fire has presented a considerable hazard to life, particularly due to the use of readily flammable materials for construction, which could lead to fire ravaging an entire city. Civil authorities were therefore called in to identify the causes of these fires and attempted to control fire risk by issuing penalties if an accidental fire was allowed to get out of control (Julie E. Samuels, June 2000). This is of much more significance in residential settlements, some of which are densely populated, placing a large number of the residents in risk of losing their property and lives. There is therefore, need to understand the causes of fires that have occurred in the past so as to establish and implement fire prevention and suppression methods to prevent further fire outbreaks in the future, or in the very least, significantly reduce the loss incurred in such events. To understand the behavior of the fire during the outbreak, the scene after the fire is put out plays a crucial role in the fire investigation process. In some cases, the procedure of putting out the fire obliterates any evidence that could be beneficial to the fire investigation team. This is significantly detrimental in the cases where arson is involved, and the destruction of evidence places the investigation in jeopardy. Firefighters are the first responders to a fire scene, and adequate awareness needs to be raised so as to inform them of their responsibility on the fire scene regarding fire investigation. However, the full responsibility of fire investigation does not lie with the firefighters. There is only so much fire fighters can do once there is a fire outbreak. They should at least try to preserve the entire fire scene, and keep the contents, fixtures, and furnishings in their pre- fire locations (Smith, January 1997). The bulk of this responsibility is held by the occupants of the structure, as they are responsible for the installation of fire suppression structures. These repression fire structures do more to maintain the contents of the structure after the fire outbreak than the firefighters can. This essay looks into the importance of firefighting tactics and forensic awareness in the fire scene evidence preservation and the fire investigation process. Fire evidence preservation To conduct proper and accurate investigations on the cause and pattern of fire in an outbreak, the evidence at the fire scene needs to be preserved. However, the evidence is more than often tampered with or damaged by a few things, such as; A. Firefighting tactics The tactics and procedures employed by the fire department to put out the fire could result in a loss of the evidence necessary for an investigation. Some of these tactics are; Use of fire hose streams Caution should be exercised when straight stream applications are used, where the stream of water is directed at the base of the fire because that is the most likely point of the origin, where the most of the valuable data about the fire is gotten from. Straight streams can move or destroy evidence Nozzle control The pressure with which the water stream leaves the hose depends on the nozzle size. High pressures could move or damage evidence about the fire Excessive water Use of excessive water results in the dilution of combustible/ ignitable fluids at the scene, which could result in negative tests results later Overhaul The evidence not destroyed by the fire and the suppression operations is often moved or damaged by excessive revision before the investigator arrives 5. Salvage operations These involve clearing or removing fire debris and contents from the scene, which has a tremendous impact on the investigation process by distorting the factual reconstruction of the scene. This adversely affects the analysis of fire patterns Electrical switches and knobs These may provide insight when developing ignition scenarios and movement of these switches and knobs could result in something crucial to the investigation being overlooked Use of power tools Firefighters may need to use power tools to access a secluded area of the building, which may include more combustibles to the scene, compromising the investigation Fire scene investigation The investigation of a fire scene resembles the investigation of any other kind of occurrence. Some of the complications associated with fire investigation include; Fires can be complex events, whose origin and cause are not obvious. The investigator must gather data, and come up with an educated guess as to the cause of the fire, based on circumstances alone. The fire has an inherent destructive nature that compromises the evidence from its onset. In some cases, this evidence is not retrievable even when a diligent and thorough search of the fire scene is carried out The large number of personnel that respond to the scene when there’s a fire outbreak, including fire, rescue, medical services that are urgent and law enforcement officers among others could very easily contaminate the scene further, compromising the investigation process The fire investigation process is handled by more than one individual. The fire service determines the cause of the fire. In the case of accidental fires, the investigation is handed over to the owner or his insurance company while, for incendiary fires, the investigation is handed over to law enforcement authorities. This change in responsibility could lead to loss of information, compromising the investigation In some areas, public officials do not have the prerequisite resources to investigate all fire outbreaks in their jurisdiction despite there being a statutory responsibility to investigate all fires and their causes and origins. Investigation methods The main methods through which fire investigation is carried out are; i. Observation This is the primary form of data and information gathering method applied in fire investigation. The behavior of the fire can be followed by observing the fire patterns, the tangible effects that remain after a fire (Smith, January 1997). ii. Interviewing The occupants and first responders to the scene can give valuable information on the cause and spread of the fire. This is more important if the investigator arrives at the scene after the fire has been put out. It is essential that interviews are done as soon as possible to get more accurate data iii. Electronic recording The use of photographs and videotaping provides a permanent record of the events during and after the fire, which can be viewed and analyzed at a later time. Fire investigation process To prevent further contamination of the crime scene and to maximize the information to be gathered from a fire scene, a series of steps need to be followed, so as not to compromise the fire investigation. These steps are; 1. Establish the role of First Responders The actions of the public safety personnel providing emergency services at a fire scene are essential to the lifesaving and fire suppression efforts, as well as to the subsequent investigations at the scene. Some of the actions the first responders should do are; Observe the fire and scene conditions so as to provide an accurate and complete description of the scene. They should observe the location and condition of witnesses, flame and smoke conditions, type of structure and weather conditions among others. Exercise scene safety, so as to identify and remove or mitigate safety hazards that may further threaten victims and public safety personnel. They should evaluate and establish the safety/ hazard zones and communicate to other personnel arriving at the scene. Preserve the fire scene, to maintain the evidence, some of which may be transient. They should observe and mentally note evidence, recognize threats to the evidence and protect it accordingly. Establish security and control at the fire scene, only allowing authorized personnel so as to perform fire suppression and rescue efforts more efficiently and effectively. This includes the formation of a security perimeter Establish an incident command system to coordinate the activities of the different agencies and organizations arriving at the scene The following steps apply to the authority responsible for investigation of the fire scene 2. Evaluating the scene When the investigating authority arrives at the scene, he must; Introduce himself and his role as an investigator to establish formal contact with other agency representatives, to promote collaborative effort at the scene. He meets with the first responders to assess previous events and the current state of the scene. Perform a scene assessment to determine the extent of the scene in which the site examination will be conducted and adjust the scene perimeter accordingly. This also helps with controlling access to the fire scene to protect its integrity. Identify and interview witnesses at the scene to get information about the events before, during and after the suppression of the fire. The location of these witnesses is crucial as it could provide insight into the occurrence and behavior of the fire Assess the scene security at the time of the fire, to determine whether the structure was intact and secure, and if the fire detection and suppression systems were operational. This information helps to determine fire development timelines and scenarios as well as whether vandalism of the property occurred before the fire Identify resources required to process the scene, determine the limitations and challenges he is faced with, such as qualification of the personnel and come up with the most efficient way to overcome these obstacles 3. Documenting the scene The events occurring at the scene should be captured for further analysis at a later date. This can be done by; Photographing/ videotaping the scene to create a permanent record to supplement the written statements and records. This is done before the site is disturbed and during the actual investigation of the scene. Preparing written documentation to provide more permanent record of the scene to help refresh recollections, support opinions, and conclusions arrived at by the investigator 4. Processing evidence at the scene In the case where the fire is determined to be incendiary, the detective ought to look into the legal requirements for scene access, search, and evidence seizure. Some of the activities to be carried out are; To identify, collect and preserve evidence, prevent contamination ensuring that the integrity is not compromised for further tests to be carried out. The packaging and transport processes should also maintain evidence quality To manage the chain of custody of the evidence, so as to prevent any tampering that could compromise the investigation 5. Completing the scene investigation After the collection and transportation of the evidence from the site, the investigator; Releases the scene to the authority responsible for the location Submits reports to appropriate databases, to develop fire trends and new equipment to cater for this Forensic awareness Extensive education needs to be carried out to inform the personnel who are in contact with the evidence, to point out their importance in the investigation process. This promotes the care to which the evidence will be handled to maintain the integrity. Some of the most affected personnel are; A. Fire safety agencies Concerning fire investigation, fire suppression forces have the following functions; i. Observation Firefighters view the scene in its most secure state and can determine the presence and location of specific pieces of evidence ii. Recognition Firefighters should recognize physical evidence to help the investigator determine the area of origin iii. Preservation Pieces of evidence crucial to the investigation process should be protected for later analysis and documentation iv. Notification Firefighters should notify the commander to make sure that the pieces of evidence preserved are handed over to the investigator B. Personnel: - Fire investigation reports analysis C. Minor incidents D. Major incidents References De Haan, J. D., & Icove, D. J., 2011. Kirk's fire investigation. Pearson Higher Ed. Sandercock, P. M. L., 2008. Fire investigation and ignitable liquid residue analysis—A review: 2001–2007. Forensic science international, 176(2), 93-110. Lentini, J. J., 2006. Scientific protocols for fire investigation. CRC press. Kirk, P. L., 1969. Fire investigation. John Wiley and sons. Anderson, R. N., 1989. Surface analysis of electrical arc residues in fire investigation. Journal of Forensic Science, 34(3), 633-637. Shen, T. S., Huang, Y. H., & Chien, S. W., 2008. Using fire dynamic simulation (FDS) to reconstruct an arson fire scene. Building and environment, 43(6), 1036-1045. Bolstad-Johnson, D. M., Burgess, J. L., Crutchfield, C. D., Storment, S., Gerkin, R., & Wilson, J. R., 2000. Characterization of firefighter exposures during fire overhaul. AIHAJ-American Industrial Hygiene Association, 61(5), 636-641. Read More