The Fire Marshal’s Office also has the responsibility to investigate fires when requested by the local fire department. The purpose of the investigation is to determine the origin and cause of a fire. There are four types of cause determinations in fire investigation. These four causes are accidental, incendiary, providential, and undetermined.  

 

Accidental Fires – a fire that occurred naturally or by accident with no intent of fraudulent or criminal purposes. 

 

Incendiary Fires – a fire that was intentionally set with use of an open flame, time delayed device, ignitable liquids, or any combination of the above.

 

Providential Fires – a fire that was the result of weather related event.

 

Undetermined Fires – a fire where there is insufficient evidence to determine the cause of the fire.

 

When conducting a fire investigation the Fire Marshal’s Office is normally the primary investigative agency. However, it is not uncommon on some fires to request assistance by local, state, and sometimes federal law enforcement agencies.    Outside resources which can be utilized in an investigation include an accelerant detection K-9, state or federal laboratories for chemical analysis, law enforcement agents cross-trained for fire investigations, and various other resources. An additional agency that is utilized on occasion is the National Weather Service. This agency has the capability to review weather related history, such as radar, and identify any possible weather related events that could have led to a fire. 

 

Last year our office conducted 139 fire investigations for local fire departments. All fires that are investigated have a report maintained on file. If you would like to receive a copy of a fire report you may contact our office at 704-283-3524 and request one. Any report will be provided free of charge.