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FIR 4305, Fire Investigation and Analysis 1

Course Learning Outcomes for Unit VIII Upon completion of this unit, students should be able to:

1. Correlate the characteristics of fire loss and arson necessary to conduct fire investigation and analysis. 1.1 Explain the basic elements of fire dynamics and the chemistry of combustion. 1.2 Explain the skills necessary for an investigator to display in cause and origin investigations.

3. Analyze a fire scenario utilizing the scientific method and other appropriate methodologies.

3.1 Explain the methodology for examining a structure fire scene. 3.2 Explain various methods used to document a fire scene.

4. Explain the legal foundation for conducting incendiary fire investigation and case preparation.

4.1 Explain the key elements involved in an arson scene investigation.

7. Summarize the fire investigator’s role involving fire-related deaths and injuries. 7.1 Evaluate a fire scene to obtain necessary information related to deaths and/or injuries.

8. Analyze explosions and explosive combustion.

8.1 Explain key safety considerations when investigating clandestine drug lab or explosive fires.

Course/Unit Learning Outcomes

Learning Activity

1.1 Unit Lesson Chapter 12 Unit VIII Project

1.2 Unit Lesson Chapter 12 Unit VIII Project

3.1 Unit Lesson Chapter 12 Unit VIII Project

3.2 Unit Lesson Chapter 12 Unit VIII Project

4.1 Unit Lesson Chapter 12 Unit VIII Project

7.1 Unit Lesson Chapter 12 Unit VIII Project

8.1 Unit Lesson Chapter 12 Unit VIII Project

Reading Assignment Chapter 12: Fire Deaths and Injuries

UNIT VIII STUDY GUIDE

Fire Investigations Involving Death and Injury

FIR 4305, Fire Investigation and Analysis 2

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Unit Lesson Some of the most complex fire investigations that an investigator will ever be involved in are those involving deaths and injuries. Many other agencies will likely be involved in fatal fire investigations, which requires fire investigators to coordinate with others and ask for outside assistance. In this unit, we will address fire-related deaths and injuries in order to provide a better understanding of the complicated nature of these incidents as well as help identify resources that the investigator may rely on in his or her investigation. Fire-Related Deaths and Injuries While everyone is at risk to death or injury in a fire, the statistics from the U.S. Fire Administration (2018b) clearly show that some of us face a much higher risk than others. People over the age of 50, and particularly those over 85, are at higher risk of perishing in a fire. According to the U.S. Fire Administration (2018b), “Males are 1.6 times more likely to die in a fire than females. African Americans and American Indians/Alaska Natives are at a greater relative risk of dying in a fire than the general population” (p. 1). Income levels are inversely proportional to fire death and injury risks—the higher the income level the lower the risk. “The relative risk of dying in a fire was greatest for people living in the South and Midwest when compared to populations living in other regions of the United States” (U.S. Fire Administration, 2018b, p. 1). All of these factors compound for those who find themselves in multiple categories of higher risk populations (U.S. Fire Administration, 2018b). Behaviors also impact the likelihood of one being injured or dying in a fire. The use of alcohol or drugs decreases a person’s perception and reaction times, which increases vulnerabilities. Having working smoke detectors has proven to be one of the most effective ways of reducing the chances of a person being injured in a fire. It is estimated that only 3% of all homes do not have smoke detectors (U.S. Fire Administration, 2018b) while approximately 70% of all fire deaths occur in homes that do not have working smoke detectors (U.S. Fire Administration, 2018a). While fatal fires account for less than 1% of all fires, they have devastating outcomes, accounting for six times the dollar loss and 11 times the injury rate per fire compared to non-fatal fires (U.S. Fire Administration, 2018b). The overall average for fire fatalities is six civilian fatalities for every 1,000 residential fires. Overall, from 2014 to 2016, over 3,300 civilians died in 1,700 fatal fires out of over 375,000 residential fires. Most fire fatalities occurred between 11 p.m. and 7 a.m., and most were in the winter months, with January having the highest percentage (U.S. Fire Administration, 2018a). Smoke inhalation was the leading cause of death in over 36% of fatal fires. Smoking and unintentional/carelessness were the top fire causes in fatal residential fires (U.S. Fire Administration, 2018a). The following video is a unique opportunity to look at a fatal fire from the inside. This video shows how teens who are out for a little mischief can do hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of damage, tie up community resources, and then face the possibility of death. Click the link below to access the video. WIVBTV. (2017, March 25). Cell phone videos show moments before fatal Lockport fire [Video]. YouTube.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u7kp8AOxZiU Click here to access the transcript for the video. In the next video, you get to see how the police, prosecutors, and fire department are intertwined in the investigative efforts of the same case as highlighted in the previous video. The importance of documentation is also highlighted as the surviving teen’s family begins to coach him on his testimony. Click the link below to access the video. WIVBTV. (2017, March 27). Only on 4: Interrogation video shows police questioning teen, parents in fatal

Lockport fire [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=33_W9gvWd1c Click here to access the transcript for the video.

FIR 4305, Fire Investigation and Analysis 3

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Collaboration in Investigating Fire Deaths Fire investigators work as a team with other professionals in order to properly process a fire scene that involves fatalities. The work must not only be thorough and complete but also be performed in a way that preserves evidentiary value and ensures admissibility of the findings during the possible criminal investigation and prosecution. Professionals from several offices may be involved in a fire scene with fatalities. This can include the investigator; medical examiner or coroner; crime scene personnel, such as evidence technicians, forensic photographers, and police detectives; and laboratory personnel, such as pathologists and toxicologists. Together, the team works to determine what happened at the scene. These professionals each contribute vital analysis and a piece of the larger picture. They work together as a team on the investigation to ascertain a complete picture of the incident (Icove et al., 2013). Causes of Fire Deaths Lethal agents in fires generally act in a synergistic fashion to overcome the victim and may include heat, smoke, toxic gases, hypoxia, flames, and blunt trauma. The majority of fire deaths are not directly caused by heat but, rather, from the toxic gases given off during a fire. On average, approximately three times as many fire victims succumb to asphyxiation by the inhalation of smoke than from thermal burns. Furthermore, over 50% of fire victims are found in bedrooms, 12% are located in family/living rooms, and 8% are found in bathrooms (U.S. Fire Administration, 2018b). In a possible fatal fire investigation, remember that you should treat this scene as a possible crime scene. There are six critical questions that must be answered and documented in any fatal fire investigation. The investigation cannot proceed to a conclusion until these six questions are answered.

• Are the remains human?

• What is the identity of the victim?

• What is the cause of death?

• What is the cause of the fire?

• Was the victim alive at the time of the fire?

• Was the death due to the fire? As with any fire scene, everything should be photographed before it is moved, especially a body. Precise details, such as body position and measurements, should also be documented. This level of detail is critical in a fatal fire investigation report, as it helps tell the story of what the person was doing at the time of fire and death. When assisting the coroner with removing the body, make sure that all body parts are included. After the removal of the body, the debris surrounding the body should be sifted layer by layer to assure that all bone fragments and body parts have been removed as well as to locate any other evidence. Normally, during a postmortem examination (autopsy), the body will be x-rayed. An examination using x-rays could reveal such things as broken bones, bullet fragments, and trauma before death such as knife wounds. The victim’s sex, age, and height can be determined by examining the skull, pelvic bones, and major limbs. The coroner should be familiar with the tests that would commonly be requested in a fatal fire investigation: blood, tissue, stomach contents, eye fluids, and the previously mentioned x-rays. Normally, fire will not totally destroy all body parts. The legal cremation of a body requires about 2 hours at over 2000°F. An exception to this would be child victims due to lower mass and calcination. Vehicle fires tend to destroy more body evidence due to several factors such as upholstery, plastics, and high interior temperatures. Some factors that a fire investigator should take into consideration when examining a fire scene involving a death include fuel load, sources of ignition, time issues, and magnitude of damage around the body. Fire’s Effects on the Human Body Fire causes the muscles to contract, sometimes resulting in a pugilistic pose, which is also known as a fighter’s stance. Muscles tend to shrink and bones weaken and fracture when exposed to heat. Heat will also cause fractures of the skull. Due to these issues, damage by firearms or explosion can be mistaken as normal damage.

FIR 4305, Fire Investigation and Analysis 4

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Heat, flames, toxic gases, hypoxia, smoke, and blunt trauma are all ways that people become victims in a fatal fire. Icove and Haynes (2018) note that it is often a combination of these factors that lead to a person’s death, so while a particular threshold may not have been met, the synergistic effect of several sub threshold values may lead to a fatality. Exposure to as little as 20 parts per million (PPM) of acrolein or as much as 900 PPM of hydrogen chloride will incapacitate a person (Icove & Haynes, 2018). Exposure to 6,000–8,000 PPM of carbon monoxide will incapacitate a person, and 12,000–16,000 PPM will be fatal. Exposure to 10–12% oxygen levels will cause incapacitation, and 8–10% levels will cause death (Icove & Haynes, 2018). When the human body reaches an internal temperature of 109°F, death generally occurs. This could result from prolonged exposure to temperatures as low as 175°F–250°F. Human skin begins to fail at approximately 130°F (Icove & Haynes, 2018).The effects of exposure to heat, toxic gases, smoke, and hypoxic atmospheres is also time dependent. Higher exposure levels can be tolerated for shorter times, and lower-level exposure over a longer period of time may be as bad or worse. Blunt force trauma is the final fatal factor to consider and may happen in a variety of ways in a fire: falls, debris striking the victim, and explosions. The investigator must remember that all of these factors are synergistic when looking at their impact on the human body. In conclusion, we need to remember that every fatal fire investigation should be treated as a crime scene. You, as the fire investigator, will need to effectively work as a part of a team in order to determine cause, origin, and cause of death; identify remains; and then to see the case successfully through prosecution if it is determined to be a criminal act. The importance of doing a professional investigation cannot be overemphasized as there will only be one chance to get the investigation right. Properly documenting the investigation is equally important so that the case can withstand the testing that the defense team will put forth; it may wind through the courts for years, and it would be nearly impossible to remember all of the key facts years later. While these cases often are high-profile and receive extensive media coverage, the fundamentals of the investigation are the same as those we use in every other fire. This is why the scientific method and the use of your consistent process are so important to ensuring that critical details are not overlooked.

References Icove, D. J., & Haynes, G. A. (2018). Kirk's fire investigation (8th ed.). Pearson. Icove, D. J., DeHaan, J., & Haynes, G. A. (2013). Forensic fire scene reconstruction (3rd ed.). Pearson. U.S. Fire Administration. (2018a). Fatal fires in residential buildings (2014–2016). Topical Fire Report Series,

19(1), 1–14. Federal Emergency Management Agency. https://www.usfa.fema.gov/downloads/pdf/statistics/v19i1.pdf

U.S. Fire Administration. (2018b). Fire risk in 2016. Topical Fire Report Series, 19(6), 1–17. Federal

Emergency Management Agency. https://www.usfa.fema.gov/downloads/pdf/statistics/v19i6.pdf