 Large Loss Fire Investigation and Management
By Robert B. Whitemore, Senior Fire Consultant
excerpted from "Motive, Means, and Opportunity, A Guide
to Fire Investigation."
American Re-Insurance Company, Claims Division, 1996.
Table of Contents
Introduction
Throughout the years in both the United States and Canada, there have
been many major incidents involving fire that have caused countless deaths
and injuries along with property losses in the mil-lions of dollars. As
we all have become increasingly aware, the complexity of the investigations
involved in assessing and determining all of the issues surrounding a major
fire loss have increased throughout the years. Technology has also increased
so that today different management and case file handling strategies can
be utilized to more effectively and efficiently handle the investigations
of large fire losses.
To effectively and efficiently handle these types of losses, it is critical
to the entire investigation process to develop specific approaches to the
handling of these types of losses so that the sheer magnitude of the investigation
and the information derived from that investigation does not become unmanageable.
This particular document will provide you with some perspective as to han-dling
large fire losses from an investigative perspective that can be applied
to both the public and private sectors of the fire investigation field.
This approach also provides substantial benefits partic-ularly in the insurance/legal
arena in providing a format for better managing large losses when they occur.
Overview
In the investigation of any fire loss, whether it be large or small,
it is beneficial to develop a strategy that an investigator can employ for
the effective and efficient handling of the fire investigation. Oftentimes,
the smaller the loss the less complex the investigation is. However, as
the size of the fire loss escalates, in many cases the complexity in handling
those cases becomes increasingly difficult. This particular article will
provide you a general overview of handling the more complex fire cases,
the majority of which end up in some type of litigation. It is critical
that a strategic plan be employed so that the investigation of the fire
can be methodically achieved with a minimum of difficulties.
Some of the primary issues that will aid in the handling and investigation
of large fire losses are:
- Assessing the magnitude of the loss
- Determining your investigative needs
- Establishing an investigation action plan
- Utilization of expert resources
- Interfacing with public officials
- Managing the investigative team
Assessing the Magnitude of the Loss
At the very early stages of your involvement in the investigation of
a major fire incident, it is important to learn the magnitude of the loss
as early as possible. This will assist you in formulating your strategic
plan that you will employ throughout the remainder of the investigation.
You should make every effort within the first few hours of receiving notification
of the loss to gather as much information as possible from a wide variety
of sources to assist you in establishing the overall size and complexity
of the investigation. Sources of information that can be of assistance may
consist of the following:
- Type of building structure involved
- Size and dimensions of structure
- Occupancy type
- Fatality/injuries
- Relationship of your client to the loss
- Insurance coverage (building/personal/liability)
- Potential exposure/loss for your particular client
- Other insurance carriers involved with the property
- Types of coverages afforded by other insurance carriers
- Information on the tenants in the building (if any)
- Relationship of tenant(s) to the alleged area where the fire originated
- Business contact for each of the tenant(s) within the building structure
- Insurance company adjusters
- Public officials (fire/law enforcement)
- Newspapers
- Radio
All of the aforementioned items can assist you in assessing the magnitude
of the loss which is critical in terms of determining the type of response
that will be necessary to conduct this investigation. While much of the
information is often sketchy within the first few hours of the loss, many
of the sources will have sufficient information to provide a general understanding
of the steps you will need to take. As time progresses the information becomes
much clearer and the relationship between your interests and any of the
other interests involved in the matter will also become clearer. The information
provided after you first receive notification of the loss will dictate the
requirements necessary for you to respond with sufficient resources to investigate
the loss.
Determining Your Investigative Needs
As discussed previously, the most critical aspects during the initial
stages of the investigation of a major fire loss is attempting to understand
the magnitude of the loss and the relationship that it has to the entity
that you are representing.
Depending on the circumstances, in some cases you may be called to become
part of a team investigating the circumstances surrounding a major fire
loss. In other circumstances, you may be requested to conduct an investigation
at some point after the initial investigation has been conducted or completed.
The two ends of the spectrum that I have just discussed, obviously affect
the response that you will be required to make in determining your investigative
needs. At one end of the spectrum you may be requested on behalf of the
owner of a building to fully investigate all the issues surrounding a particular
fire. The size and complexity of that type of investigation is extremely
labor-intensive and the requirements for a vast array of expertise is often
necessary. Conversely, you may be retained by a company that had a particular
product within that building and you may not be notified until some months
after the fire. Your response to this type of large loss is obviously quite
different than the previous scenario described. Typically, in the latter
scenario, you may have a narrowly defined area of expertise that will be
required to assist in analyzing the fire. However, with the first scenario,
the response may require a vast array of investigators/ engineers/experts
to analyze all of the aspects of the building and the relationship of the
fire to the systems within the building.
It is also imperative, upon receipt of notification of the loss, to establish
and determine as many issues that may be involved in the investigation as
possible. This will assist in determining the type of expertise required
to assess the large loss fire. Each fire is unique because of the different
types of structure, construction, mechanical system, HVAC, electrical and
other issues, which dictate the expertise that may be required. This is
all part of determining your investigative needs early, so you have the
ability to effectively staff and manage the investigation.
Other issues that often are overlooked during the initial stages of the
investigation are:
Transportation: Transportation to and from loss site.
Food Service: Arrangements must be made for food service for the
investigation team throughout the duration of the investigation.
Lodging: Lodging must be arranged for all of the members of the
investigation team. It is advantageous for all members to stay at the same
motel/hotel, preferably all on the same floor.
Equipment: Determine equipment requirements for the members of
the investigation team. This would consist of items such as cameras, flashes,
saws, hammers, shovels, miscellaneous hand tools, evidence tags, evidence
containers, drafting equipment, etc.
Heavy Equipment: Heavy equipment needs also have to be assessed
during the determination stage of investigation needs. This may include
items such as large hand tools, front-end loaders, cranes, etc. that may
be necessary to reach the area of origin. This is further dictated by the
physical aspects of the building and the location of the fire. Obviously,
the difference in the equipment requirements may vary from a one-story commercial
manufacturing warehouse to a 60-story high-rise office building.
Sanitary Facilities: Sanitary facilities need to be addressed
during the initial stages so that all of the necessary equipment can be
made available for the investigation team. This is also contingent upon
the size and duration of loss. It may also be necessary, due to environmental
considerations, to establish a decontamination zone if the investigation
team is required to wear protective equipment.
Establishing an Investigation Action Plan
As soon as you receive notification that you will be involved in a major
loss investigation, you should attempt to establish a plan to conduct the
investigation. By formulating a plan of action you can methodically assess
and document the needs of your team prior to commencing the investigation.
This plan can be as simple as writing a few thoughts down or as complex
as developing a flow chart and timeline to visualize the progression of
the investigation. This process allows you to determine if the investigation
is progressing in a timely and orderly fashion. Some of the timeline considerations
may be predicated upon time sensitive issues such as limited access to the
building as a result of multi-party litigation, court ordered restraints
limiting access to the building, environmental considerations and even weather
conditions. There may be other factors that influence the timeliness of
your ability to initiate and complete your investigation.
Initially the primary focus should be your attempt to not only secure
the facility but also arrange for access to the facility. Security will
be needed to restrain onlookers from entering your investigation site. The
security should be placed at the facility at the conclusion or in cooperation
with the public authorities that are involved in the investigation. A security
company should be engaged for main-taining 24-hour security at the loss
site until the investigation is complete. Efforts should be made to establish
a system of identification for members of the primary investigation team,
other investigation teams, tenants, insurance company representatives, public
officials, etc. A written protocol on establishing issues involving security
can be beneficial to all parties. The security protocol would allow a managed
and systematic access to the facility based upon the status of the investigation,
structural stability, and health and environmental concerns. All tenants
and/or other interested parties, other than the investigation team(s), should
be provided guards to escort them through the facility. A means of documenting
people gaining access to the site should also be incorporated into the security
protocol along with photo identification badges to ensure only authorized
personnel enter the site. Once the security of the scene has been established
means to assess factors relating to the structure itself must be established.
One of the primary issues is to determine if there is an environmental or
air quality issue that must be addressed prior to the commencement of the
investigation. It may be necessary to retain expertise to monitor the air
quality and determine if any special environ-mental protection measures
are needed. The individual assigned to air quality assessment can also determine
the level of environmental protection required, such as a self-contained
breathing apparatus (SCBA). Along with this assessment, a determination
can be made whether to employ the HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning
system) if operable. This may assist in resolving some of the issues with
respect to air quality.
To further establish the environment in which the investigation will
be conducted, it may be necessary to appoint a monitoring team whose primary
purpose will be to monitor the air quality. If multiple parties are involved,
this can be a joint effort on behalf of all parties to ensure the quality
of the air where the investigation will be conducted. All parties can be
involved in the development of a protocol that will outline what the requirements
will be for the investigation. This can range any-where from no personal
protection requirements to full protective equipment including SCBA requirements.
Another issue that is important during the initial stages as you develop
your investigation action plan, is to have a structural assessment made,
if necessary, to determine the structural integrity of the building. Shoring
or other structural stabilization measures may be necessary before the investigation
team would be able to enter a particular site. A structural engineer can
be extremely important in assessing the stability and integrity of the building
after the fire.
As you determine your action plan you will need to assess the lighting
needs for the investigation. This can range from portable lights powered
by a generator to a temporary power installation off of which different
means of lighting can be established. Installation of a temporary power
source can also be beneficial if electrical equipment has to be utilized.
As part of the initial phase of the investigation, separate and apart
from the determination of the origin and cause of the fire, it is often
necessary to gather as much factual information relative to the fire as
quickly as possible. One of the first issues that need to be addressed is
determining the identification of tenants and/or parties involved in the
fire and establishing a line of communication with those individuals. The
tenants/parties can be an enormous source of information in the determination
of the origin and cause of the fire.
It may also become necessary for you to establish a protocol that allows
tenants to return to the loss site on a very controlled basis. Obviously
you do not want people gaining access to the building and becoming injured
in a potentially unsafe fire-damaged building. However, the tenants/parties
involved may have business records, personal belongings, financial documents,
etc. that are critical to the continuation of their business.
Depending on the specific tenant(s) and the tenant(s') location to the
area of origin, it may become necessary to identify as much storage/content
information about the area as possible. The storage or content information
relating to a particular tenant or party in a large loss investigation can
provide invaluable information. This information will assist you in assessing
generally the fire load within a given area and the relationship of that
fire load to the origin, cause and spread of the fire. The con-tent information
can also assist you in determining any potential ignition sources that may
be identified within the area of origin. The storage/content information
can be general with respect to the various tenants or occupants within the
building, but also needs to be specific with respect to the area identified
as the area of origin.
It is also advantageous to obtain blueprints and any other documents
relating to the building as soon as possible. This should include as many
of the "as built-in" blueprints as possible. If necessary, you
may obtain the blueprints from the architect, builder, building maintenance,
etc.
A concrete effort should also be made to locate and identify all documents
and records relating to the building. A portion of your investigation team
can be assigned to this aspect of the investigation to obtain a historic
perspective of the building prior to the fire. This information can be obtained
from some of the following sources:
- Building Department
- Fire Department
- Fire Prevention Bureau
- Recorder of the Deeds
- Assessor's Office
- Surveyor's Office
- County Court
- District Court
- Federal Court
- UCC Filings
- City Council Records
- Newspapers
As you are establishing your investigation action plan, be sure you have
assigned specific members of the investigation team to conduct interviews.
The interviews would consist of representatives of the police department
and/or law enforcement, fire department, tenants or parties within the building,
witnesses external to the building and witnesses internal to the building.
Witnesses that I have identified as external to the building would be those
that have no interest within the building. The individuals may be merely
passersby or had some specific knowledge relating to the fire that needs
to be documented by the investigation team. Those witnesses internal to
the structure would be anyone that had a specific interest within the building
such as building owners, tenants, security personnel, maintenance personnel,
etc. Critical to both the interview and the document search process is the
matter of timely investigation, in particular, the obtaining of documents
within a municipality once a major incident happens. The sooner your investigation
team begins to locate and identify all documents, records, permits, codes,
witnesses, etc., the better information you will be able to gather for the
initial stages of the investigation. Some of this information can be paramount
to your early assessment of the overall investigation.
After a major incident, some of the records and documents that you desire
may be detained by public officials and not available until authorized by
representatives of the law enforcement/fire department. Therefore, if the
members of your investigation team begin searching for the records and identifying
witnesses within the first 48 to 72 hours post-fire, then you stand a good
chance of gathering substantial information before the records/witnesses
may become unavailable. Members of the media often try to access such documents
and it can be a "race to the courthouse" to obtain them.
Another aspect of obtaining documents and assigning team members to conduct
interviews is to locate all of the applicable building and fire codes relative
to the structure. These codes should be those that were enforced both at
the time that the structure was constructed, the codes that were relevant
as a result of any renovation work done to the building during its history
and the codes that would have been in effect at the time that the fire occurred.
The various codes play a major role in both the investigation and litigation
of a major fire loss. All the information that has been provided in this
section of establishing an investigation action plan are items that can
be addressed pre-site investigation. The next stage of the investigation
can run concurrently with some of the aforementioned items that have been
discussed including documenting areas external to the area of origin, documentation
of the area of origin, the determination of the cause of the fire, the determination
of the expert assistance required for you to conduct your investigation,
evidentiary issues and debris removal issues. Many of these areas will be
commented on later in this article.
Utilization of Expert Resources
The magnitude of the loss often dictates the different types of expertise
that may be required to assist in conducting a large loss investigation.
As is critical with the handling of any case such as this, it is paramount
that an individual be assigned to manage the overall aspects of the investigation.
This individual will be responsible for the day-to-day activities relating
to the site investigation. All other investigative assignments outside the
general scope of the actual site investigation also report to the individual
assigned to manage the investigation so that all information can be coordinated
through one individual.
This section provides insight into the different areas of expertise that
may be required during the course of any large loss investigation. It is
a case-by-case issue as to the necessary expertise that will be required
to investigate a large fire loss. It is also dependent upon the role your
client may play in the building, i.e., building owner, tenant, product manufacturer,
etc. I have identified the various experts that may be beneficial in conducting
a large loss investigation and what role they would play in the overall
assessment of the loss. The specific area of expertise and their assigned
responsibilities would consist of the following
Origin and Cause Investigator:
- Assigned to determine area of origin
- Assigned to determine point of origin
- Determines potential cause of the fire
- Eliminates other potential causes of the fire
- Photographs/video tapes/diagrams
- Identifies evidence/retention of evidence
- Conducts interviews
- Obtains samples for laboratory testing
Electrical Engineer:
- Assesses primary service to the building
- Assesses secondary service in the building
- Assesses service entrance(s) and panel board(s)
- Analyzes fire damaged electrical equipment
- Conducts assessment of emergency (standby power)
- Analyzes other miscellaneous electrical equipment as needed
- Analyzes any emergency transfer switches to determine their function
and operation
- Conducts circuit analysis as required
- Eliminates/identifies electrical ignition sources
- Determines compliance of: NFPA 70 (NFPA 70 - National Electrical Code/National
Electrical Safety Code)
- Calculates specific loads of circuits, equipment, etc.
- Assesses electrical requirements for emergency fire alarm systems
Mechanical Engineer:
- Assesses mechanical equipment in building
- Determines mechanical equipment involved in area of origin
- Eliminates/identifies mechanical equipment in area of origin
HVAC Engineer:
- Assesses heating systems within structure
- Assesses ventilation systems within structure
- Determines if fire detection/HVAC shutdown interface functioned properly
- Determines HVAC involvement in fire/smoke spread
- Determines HVAC involvement in ignition scenario
- Determines code compliance:
- NFPA 30 - Flammable and Combustible Liquids Code
- NFPA 31 - Standards for the installation of oil burning equipment
- NFPA 54 - National Fuel Gas Code
- NFPA 58 - Standard for the storage and handling of LP gas
- NFPA 86A - Standard for ovens and furnaces
- NFPA 86B - Standard for industrial furnaces
- NFPA 86C - Standard for industrial furnaces using a special processing
atmosphere
- NFPA 89M - Manual on clearances for heat producing appliances
- NFPA 90A - Standard for the installation of air conditioning and ventilating
systems
- NFPA 90B - Standard for the installation of resident type warm air
heating and air conditioning systems
- NFPA 255 - Standard for chimneys, fireplaces and vents
Laboratory Technician:
- Conducts laboratory analysis of fire debris samples: v Gas chromatography
v Mass spectroscopy
- Conducts specialized test procedures
Toxicologist:
- Obtains samples of materials to test for products of combustion
- Identifies products of combustion produced during fire
- Determines relationship between material pyrolyzed and products of
combustion produced
- Determines effects products of combustion had on fatalities/injuries
- Determines effect products of combustion had on equipment
Fire Protection Engineer:
- Assesses public fire protection systems
- Assesses sprinkler systems
- Assesses standpipe systems
- Assesses fire detection systems
- Assesses fire alarm systems
- Assesses special fire extinguishing systems
- Determines code compliance:
- NFPA 13 - Standard for the installation of sprinkler systems
- NFPA 14 - Standard for the installation of standpipe and hose systems
- NFPA 20 - Standard for the installation of centrifugal fire pumps
- NFPA 71 - Standard for the installation, maintenance and use of central
stations signaling systems
- NFPA 72A - Standards for the installation, maintenance and use of local
protective signaling systems
- NFPA 72B - Standard for the installation, maintenance and use of auxiliary
protective signaling systems
- NFPA 72C - Standard for the installation, maintenance and use of remote
station protective signaling systems
- NFPA 72D - Standard for the installation, maintenance and use of proprietary
protective signaling systems
- NFPA 80 - Standard for fire doors and windows
- NFPA 204 - Guide for smoke and heat venting
Interior Finish/Fire Spread Expert:
- Assesses composition of interior finish materials
- Determines fuel load characteristics and interior finish
- Determines fuel load characteristics of content material internal/external
to area of origin
- Determines rate of heat release (kw) of material
- Determines fire spread based upon material/interior finish
- Assess building construction and determines factors that may influence
fire spread
- Determines if interior finish played factor in abnormal fire spread
provides ability to conduct small scale tests of specific materials (ASTM
84/NFPA/UL723 - Steiner tunnel test) has the ability to conduct larger
full scale fire tests (room or corner tests)
Computer Modeling/Animation Expert:
- Develops data on various characteristics of the fire
- Assists in providing variables in assessing the factors relating to
fire propagation, smoke propagation, rate of heat release, time/temperature
curves, etc.
- Provides different variables dependent upon fuel load geometric configuration,
ignition scenarios, ventilation's factors, etc.
- Provides graphs/printout of data produced by computer
- Provides animation of fire ignition/propagation based upon computer
modeling data and expert witness testimony
Security Expert:
- Assesses security procedures of a building/structure
- Determines appropriate security needs for property
- Determines if the security services were performed according to the
contractual relationship with property
- Assesses role of security service in preventing, detecting and reporting
fires within building/structure
- Assesses compliance of codes: v NFPA 601 - Recommendations for guard
service and fire loss prevention v NFPA 602 - Standard for guard operations
in fire loss prevention
Elevator Expert:
- Assesses equipment and includes/excludes as potential cause
- Determines if elevator recalls performed properly
- Determines if fire department bypass operated properly
- Determines role elevators played in contributing to deaths/injuries
- Determines role elevators had in assisting/hindering fire suppression
activities
- Determines role elevators/shafts played in vertical fire protection
Pathologist:
- Assists civil/criminal investigations in establishing circumstances
surrounding fire deaths
- Conducts post-mortem examinations
- Identifies contributing factors leading to cause of death
Profiling Expert:
- Analyzes data relating to incident plus any additional data of similar
incidents
- Works with investigation team in targeting properties that may be susceptible
to serial arsonists
- Works with investigation team in providing profile of individual(s)
that fits into pattern of conduct
Chemical Engineer:
- Assists in analyzing chemical(s) involved in particular incident
- Determines if a combination of chemicals are capable of causing fire
- Develops protocols for testing procedures
- Provides spectrum of tests to assist in formulating/refining theories
regarding involvement of chemicals and ignition scenario
Structural Engineer:
- Determines structural integrity post-fire
- Assists in structural stabilization plan post-fire
- Works with investigation team to assess/stabilize area where investigation
to be conducted
- Assists investigation team in developing and implementation of debris
removal protocol
- Assists in total structural assessment - post-investigation to determine
salvage ability of building and necessary renovation plans
Metallurgical:
- Analyze electrical conductors
- Analyze various metals to establish temperature curves
- Fracture/failure analysis
Environmental Engineer:
- Assists in assessing air quality post-fire
- Determines physical requirements/tests of investigators -pre-investigation
(to establish base line studies)
- Determines protective equipment requirements
- Constantly monitors air quality during investigation
- Conducts tests of air samples during investigation monitoring process
Cooling Systems' Expert:
- Determines compliance of building code:
- Uniform Building Code
- Building Officials and Code Administration International
- Southern Building Code Congress
- American Insurance Association
- Determines compliance of fire code:
- AIA Fire Prevention Code
- Uniform Fire Code
- BOCA Basic Fire Prevention Code
- Southern Standard Fire Prevention Code
- NFPA Fire Prevention Code
- Determines compliance of other codes and standards:
- American National Standard Institute
- American Society of Testing and Materials
- Mechanical Codes
- Plumbing Codes
- Electrical Codes
Interfacing with Public Officials
Dependent upon the location, a particular large fire loss may dictate
the public involvement in a loss of great magnitude. The complexity of the
investigation along with available resources of a particular local, state
or federal entity may be limited, which may necessitate the involvement
of outside expertise hired by those individuals with an interest in the
building. In some cases, public officials will retain the scene until the
completion of their investigation, at which time they turn the site over
to the building owner and/or their representatives. In other cases, public
officials may not have the equipment or expertise to conduct large-scale
fire investigations and therefore rely heavily upon experts retained by
interested parties to assist in conducting the investigation.
This assistance can range anywhere from the use of the different types
of experts that were identified previously to the offer of special equipment,
tools, testing facilities, laboratories, etc. Every effort should be made
to cooperate with the authorities to the fullest extent possible. Within
the United States there are certain laws that specifically address the cooperative
agreement between public officials and insurance companies that are called
arson immunity laws. This allows the cooperative agreement between investigative
agencies and insurance companies. The majority of the states have some type
of arson immunity legislation that allows for the exchange of information
and cooperation in investigations involving suspicious or incendiary fires.
Managing the Investigation Team
As indicated previously, it is imperative to the overall assessment and
investigation of a major fire loss to assign someone to coordinate all of
the activities of the investigation team. As you can appreciate from what
has already been discussed, there is a considerable amount of information
and logistical management merely in handling the investigative aspects of
a large fire loss. The per-son assigned to this task should have a general
understanding of the management of large fire losses and have the logistical
management expertise in methodically managing the overall investigation.
In managing the investigation team, at a very early stage you need to
assess all of the requirements that have been outlined and put them in place
to effectively manage the loss site. This is particularly important with
respect to experts. If you arbitrarily engage numerous experts of various
disciplines to become involved in the investigation and then do not have
a plan for the most productive use of their time, then you are wasting the
time and financial resources of your client. Case in point, while conducting
the origin and cause investigation it makes little sense to have a chemical
engineer on site participating in the investigation until such time that
you determine if a chemical engineer is required and/or you identify specific
chemicals that may be involved in either the ignition and/or propagation
of the fire.
All investigation activities should be coordinated through the individual
assigned to mange the investigation. Team assignments should be made by
the managing investigator so that he or she can staff the various aspects
of the investigation as needed. The managing investigator can also pro-vide
the logistical management of "staging" experts in and out of the
structure so that they can operate on a cost-effective basis as part of
the investigation team.
To achieve the maximum amount of information and document it accordingly,
it is imperative that the investigation team meets on a daily basis to fully
understand the direction of the investigation. We typically conduct morning
breakfast meetings to have the day's assignments delegated to the different
investigators/experts. This provides a clear, concise direction of the investigation
team on a daily basis which is managed through the managing investigator.
We also have nightly debriefings where each member of the investigative
team would report the progress of their assigned task(s) for the given day.
Each investigator is responsible for his/her own dictation/documentation
of notes relative to their investigative activities. This would also include
documentation such as photographs, video and scene schematics. During the
daily debriefing sessions in the evening each investigator relates to the
managing investigator all the pertinent aspects of the investigation activities
that day. The managing investigator then documents a synopsis of activities
for the given day and logs it accordingly.
The morning briefing and evening debriefing sessions can be more effective
through the utilization of computer systems, in particular laptop computers
that can keep track of the logistical management of the investigation team.
The information provided to the managing investigator on a daily basis can
be incorporated into a computer data base and retrieved in any format. This
process of handling information can also assist you in reporting to your
clients and/or the lawyers involved in the case. Typically once the daily
debriefing session was concluded, if our clients/attorneys were not involved
in the daily debriefing sessions, then they would be briefed either later
that evening or the following morning.
In handling major fire loss litigation, it is often advantageous to computerize
the documents that are obtained during the course of the investigation.
This allows the opportunity to effectively track all the documents that
are obtained during the early stages in the investigation that may be voluminous.
Documents such as blueprints, building records, fire records, inspection
reports, witness statements, etc., can all be categorized and classified
in a computer data base, which aids in accessibility. This service can be
produced in-house, if your company/firm has that capability or it can be
contracted out.
Evidence and Debris Removal
Two issues that interrelate with the conducting of the origin and cause
investigation and are intimately tied to that process include the identification
and retention of evidence and the subsequent removal of debris from the
investigation site.
Specifically outlining the debris removal process is done because this
issue may cause extreme problems in the overall investigation operation.
Many times with multiple party litigation there is considerable dialogue
regarding the actual process of how the debris is to be removed and disposed
of. It is advantageous at the early stages to try and agree, by a consensus
of the parties, as to how the site will be excavated and the debris removed.
If the debris does not have environmental contamination, then it can be
disposed according to the jurisdiction where the fire occurred. If in fact
there are environmental issues involved, then it may require special handling
before it can be disposed of in an appropriate way. Again, the management
investigator will need to work with companies that can provide the specific
equipment needs for debris removal.
In some cases it may be necessary to develop a protocol or "memorandum
of understanding" that documents and addresses not only debris removal,
but the investigation process as a whole. This has been utilized very effectively
in the past in many other large scale investigations where all par-ties
basically arrive at an understanding that is categorized as a "memorandum
of understanding." This document sets forth all of the parties' issues
with respects to how the investigation will be con-ducted.
The second item that is separately addressed under this section is the
handling of the evidentiary issues relating to a particular large loss fire.
Without question this can be the most important aspect of the entire investigation
which relates to the identification, tagging, photographs/video taping and
persevering the evidence for future examinations. The process of identifying,
tagging, photographing, video taping and preserving the evidence is not
altogether complicated. What does complicate matters is if you have multiple
parties that are involved with their teams tagging different pieces of evidence.
There needs to be a standardized tagging and identification process so that
all the evidence and the parties that tag the evidence can be recorded properly.
Once all evidence has been identified, tagged, and photographed, (this should
be done while all the evidence is still in place prior to removal from the
building) and all parties examine all of the tagged evidence, then a systematic
process of removing it from the site can be employed.
Before the evidence is totally removed from its previous location, steps
need to be taken in order to identify locations where the evidence can be
effectively stored. Warehouses or mini storage facilities can be obtained
on a cost-sharing basis with all parties involved in the investigation so
that the evidence is stored in a controlled environment. Multiple locks
can be employed so that it takes more than one party to achieve access to
a specific warehouse/mini storage facility. This provides the security necessary
to ensure the condition of the evidence until all parties can be present
to examine the evidence in a systematic manner.
Depending upon the parties involved in the investigation, it may become
necessary to establish a protocol for the future examination of the evidence.
This has been done in many cases that we have become involved and it formalizes
the actual process of the examination and dissection of the evidence. This
is important if in fact the evidence is going to be altered form the condition
that it was found at the time of the investigation. If in fact a product
has been identified that may be related to causation and/or any of the damages
incurred as a result of the fire, it is suggested that the legal representatives
of your party consider the notification of the company that manufactured
the aforementioned product before any of the evidence is significantly altered.
Synopsis
If in fact you were called upon to become involved in a significant fire
loss that is considered a "large loss," (because of the number
of injuries, fatalities, number of buildings, size of building, etc.,) then
hopefully this document will provide some direction on how to effectively
manage a large fire investigation.
As illustrated at the beginning of this paper, it is extremely important
to act within the initial hours after notification of the loss to quickly
and effectively assess its magnitude and decide what is required to effectively
conduct the investigation.
This was excerpted from a presentation by Robert B. Whitemore,
a Senior Fire Consultant with Ward & Whitemore Universal Fire Consultants,
P.O. Box 475, Prior Lake, MN 55372. It is used with his permission. Inclusion
of this material in Motive, Means and Opportunity does not constitute a
warranty of its accuracy, completeness or applicability to any particular
circumstances.
 Reprinted with permission.
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