PowerPoint Presentation

[Audio] These PowerPoints closely follow the IFSTA Fire Investigator 2nd Edition text book, and the NFPA 921 Guide for Fire and Explosion Investigators, 2017 Edition. While we acknowledge that in late 2021 a 3rd Edition of the IFSTA manual was released, this course is based on the 2nd Edition textbook, so if you are using the newer textbook there may be some minor updates which might shift where you are in the book as we go. Chapter 1 focuses on the roles and responsibilities of the fire investigator, and we will also look at this with an Ontario lens in order to clearly understand our role in conducting origin and cause investigations, following the scientific method..

[Audio] In Ontario, there are several different bodies that investigate the origin and cause of fires. From the government's perspective, there are three main bodies: the Office of the Fire Marshall and Emergency Management ( OFMEM), police services who focus more on fatal fires as the coroners constable and when there is reason to believe a fire may be suspicious in nature, and lastly local fire departments who are required to submit standard incident reports to the Fire Marshal. There are also private fire investigators who investigate fires from the lens of their clients, predominantly insurance companies..

[Audio] In Canada, there are several laws that we need to follow as it pertains to both fire investigations and rights of entry to conduct these investigations. The ultimate law in Canada is the Charter of Rights. It supersedes any other law. Underneath the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, we have federal laws, such as the Criminal Code of Canada. Federal laws supersede provincial law, thus the Criminal Code would take precedence over the Fire Protection and Prevention Act, which is a provincial statute. Thus, an arson investigation conducted under the Criminal Code would take precedence over an origin and cause investigation under the FPPA. The next step is Provincial laws and statutes, such as the Fire Protection and Prevention Act, the Occupational Health and Safety Act (including Section 21 guidelines) or the Coroners Act, and under which there are numerous regulations. Provincial laws typically supersede municipal bylaws, unless otherwise stated. Lastly, we have municipal bylaws, which often do not speak to fire investigations, but are made possible pursuant to the Municipal Act (provincial law). Authorities under various legislation are dictated in each piece of legislation. For example, there are very specific authorities given to certain classes of individuals under each piece of legislation, such as rights of entry under the FPPA, which are specific to either the Fire Marshal, Fire Chief, or Assistant's to the Fire Marshal. There are also specified definitions, such as a "competent person" under OHSA which speaks to required knowledge, skills and experience..

[Audio] The FPPA is a piece of provincial legislation that governs the Office of the Fire Marshal, municipal fire departments, and also includes regulatory requirements of various people and bodies, such as regulatory requirements to install smoke alarms in residential dwellings. Unlike the Criminal Code, typically regulatory legislation such as the FPPA does not require proof of Mens Rea, or intent, but rather just speaks to either was it done or not done. For example, you either had the smoke alarm installed, or you did not. Regulatory legislation often includes for penalties for non-conformance with those regulations. Because the fire investigations you will do are almost exclusively conducted under the authority of the FPPA, we do not look at Mens Rea (intent), because we are solely focused on the origin, cause, and circumstances of the fire. This differs from police, who approach fire investigations typically from the perspective of the Criminal Code, which requires the burden of proof to include Mens Rea, and therefore police officers are also considering motive in their criminal code investigations conducted under the authority of a criminal code search warrant. Ultimately, the reason we conduct origin and cause investigations as municipal fire investigators is two-fold. We have an obligation to report on the origin and cause of the fires in our SIR reports to the OFM, and secondly we should e striving to reduce the frequency and severity of fires not only in our local jurisdiction, but across the province, and if we can identify trends, we can focus public education and code enforcement on these trends to drive substantial change, thus improving public safety..

[Audio] Why do we conduct fire investigations in Ontario? This all stems from duties and responsibilities under the Fire Protection and Prevention Act. The FPPA requires the Province to appoint a Fire Marshal, under the FPPA the Fire Marshal has certain duties and responsibilities, which are outlined under Section 9 of the Act. The ones that pertain to fire investigations are the Fire Marshal's duty to investigate the origin, cause and circumstances of any fire or of any explosion or condition that in the opinion of the Fire Marshal might have caused a fire, explosion, loss of life or damage to property, and further to keep a record of every fire reported to the Fire Marshal with the facts, statistics and circumstances. In recent years, Ontario is seeing roughly 11,000 fires annually. Obviously this is a monumental task to comply with the requirements of the Act. As such, the Fire Marshal has, by virtue of the Act, Assistants. These Assistants to the Fire Marshal are legally required to follow the Fire Marshal's directives. One of the directives issued by the Fire Marshal requires the submission of Standard Incident Reports on a regular basis to the OFM. Because the SIR reports contain sections on origin and cause, to properly complete an SIR, one needs to complete an origin and cause investigation. This then allows the Fire Marshal to comply with their duties and responsibilities, because all fires are being investigated, reported, and tracked. Certain fires are of particular interest, such as certain large loss fires, fires involving significant injury or death, public interest fires, explosions, and incendiary fires. Because of the complex nature of these investigations, another Directive of the Fire Marshal requires notification to the OFM of these certain fires, which allows the OFM to potentially assign dedicated provincial fire investigators to conduct those complex fire investigations..

[Audio] It is important to understand the various authorities under the FPPA as it relates to conducting fire investigations. Section 9 ( 2) of the FPPA speaks directly to the duties of the Fire Marshal, and includes the duty to investigate origin, cause and circumstances of fires. However, this duty is specific to the Fire Marshal, and does not automatically include fire chiefs, assistants to the fire marshal, or anyone else, unless that duty has been delegated by the Fire Marshal to someone pursuant to Section 10. An example of a delegation under Section 10, is the delegation of authority to investigate fires to the OFM fire investigators. Fire investigations at a municipal level are investigated by the Fire Chief pursuant to Section 14 of the FPPA, which we will cover in later slides..

[Audio] So how do we get to the requirement to conduct fire origin and cause investigations in Ontario? Under the FPPA, Section 11 identifies certain parties that are designated as Assistants to the Fire Marshal, including Fire Chiefs. These individuals "shall follow the Fire Marshal's directives" as outlined in Section 11 ( 1). They are also required under subsection ( 2) to report to the Fire Marshal all fires and other matters that may be specified. Fire Marshal Directive 2015- 001 requires Assistants to the Fire Marshal to complete and file Standard Incident Reports ( SIRs) to the Office of the Fire Marshal, and within the SIR reports for structure fires, the origin and cause of the fire needs to be completed. Therefore, in order to follow the Act, and the fire marshal's directive, one must complete an origin and cause investigation. Failure to complete this would be a violation of the Act..

[Audio] Ultimately, what we want to do is drive positive change across the Province in an effort to reduce the severity and likelihood of fires. One of the fires that influenced changes was a fire that occurred in a nursing home that contained 25 occupants. After this fire, there were a number of code changes or amendments that were influenced by this fire. Even though the fire was classified as undetermined because of competing hypothesis', the findings were still effective at persuading legislators to amend and alter codes, resulting in safer buildings and occupancies. There were also mandatory training requirements that came out of these investigations. Ultimately, these unfortunate fires did result in positive changes in the province. As fire investigators, we need to understand the 7 Principles of Life Safety, and how they performed in a particular fire. Historically, Ontario had developed a Comprehensive Fire Safety Effectiveness Model. While this model is currently under review, the concepts within it are still valid. Again, if we approach fire investigations as the "how do we prevent these from happening again" perspective, that is ultimately what is driving our duties and responsibilities under the FPPA..

[Audio] It is important for fire investigators to understand that their rights of entry derive from the FPPA. Section 14 specifically provides this authority only to the Fire Marshal or a fire chief, it does not provide this authority to an Assistant to the Fire Marshal. So municipal fire investigators, who are not a fire chief, need to have delegated authority which we will cover in a couple slides. Under Section 14, entry on land or premises may be done where a fire has occurred or where the authorized person(s) have reason to believe something may cause a fire. If you do not have delegated authority, preferably in writing, then you have no authority under this Section of the FPPA, and should not be entering upon that land. This differs from entry onto land for the purpose of extinguishing a fire or dealing with another emergency, which is covered under Section 13 of the Act. That Section speaks to entry for the purpose of dealing with that emergency situation, and does not extend to conducting origin and cause investigations. Section 15 of the Act provides for entry onto land and certain powers in dealing with immediate threats to life where a fire or emergency may occur. There is also Section 19, which provides for entry onto land for the purpose of conducting inspections..

[Audio] Once a fire chief, or someone delegated by a fire chief, has lawfully entered onto land for the purpose of conducting a fire investigation, they have some fairly broad powers as outlined in Section 14( 2) of the FPPA. They can close and/or prevent entry to the land, remove exhibits or samples, take photographs, dig or otherwise make excavations, require the use of equipment or machinery to assist, and can also ask any reasonable question of any person either orally or in writing. These are very broad powers to be given to someone, especially without a warrant. This is part of the reason that when the legislation was written, these broad powers were not given to all Assistants to the Fire Marshal, but rather focused to the Fire Marshal or a Fire Chief..

[Audio] As many fire investigators in Ontario are not Fire Chiefs, their authority MUST derive from the delegation of authority as permitted under Section 6, Subsection 6 of the FPPA, which allows a Fire Chief to delegate their powers under Section 14, and may be subject to such limitations, restrictions or conditions as may be set out in the delegation. This delegation of authority should ideally be in written form, so that a fire investigator can provide proof of the delegation should their authority ever be challenged..

[Audio] In rare circumstance where entry for the purpose of conducting a fire investigation pursuant to Section 14 of the FPPA is being obstructed, or if an investigator believes they may be obstructed, the investigator may apply for an entry warrant under Section 14, Subsection 6, of the FPPA. This section allows for an investigator to ask the court to issue an entry warrant under provincial legislation. Depending on the reason for the need for the warrant, the fire investigator may ask the court to allow for other parties to assist, such as a police officer. The use of force for a fire origin and cause investigation is normally not permitted, the exception to this is provided for in obtaining an entry warrant. For example, if a fire occurred in a property where the property owner secures the property prior to investigators arrival and refuses to unlock the door, the investigator would need to obtain an entry warrant in order to forcibly enter the property for their investigation..

[Audio] Sometimes a fire investigator may wish to call upon an outside expert to assist in their investigation. One common example of this would calling upon the Electrical Safety Authority ( ESA) to assist with examining the electrical components of a structure. Another example may be calling upon an appliance technician if you suspect an appliance may be related. Or calling upon an engineer to assess structural integrity prior to making entry for the investigation. This Section applies to anyone authorized under Section 14, therefore this is the same Section that would be used if an OFM Investigator wanted to call upon suppression crews to assist with excavating a site during their investigation. If a fire investigator is seeking an entry warrant, they need to name the persons ( Constable Benoit) or classes of persons (e.g. police officers) needed to assist them, otherwise those assisting parties would not have the authority to enter the property along with the investigator..

[Audio] Understanding your legal authority to conduct the investigation is crucial. More and more often, fire investigators are being called upon in a legal or quasi-legal environment to testify on their findings. The credibility of the investigator can be easily thrown into doubt if they cannot articulate their legal authority to conduct their fire investigation. In a standard fire investigation report, the fire investigator needs to clearly outline the authority under which the investigation took place. Should the investigation transition between different pieces of legislation, and therefore different authorities, this needs to be clearly identified. For example, a fire involving a fatality, may run under the Coroners Act and the Fire Protection and Prevention Act. If there is also suspicion of foul play, then that would fall under the Criminal Code. Most fire investigators do not have duties and responsibilities under the Coroners Act, or the Criminal Code, therefore the investigative authority section should identify who was responsible for the investigation under those Act. Note, a fire investigator may be called upon to assist other investigators with conducting the origin and cause investigation, even though the predominant authority may be under that other Act. For example, a police service may be investigating an incendiary fire, and may ask the court to name the fire investigator (of the fire department) to assist them with their criminal investigation. Therefore this fire would be investigated under the authority of the criminal code, pursuant to a s. 487 criminal code search warrant as obtained by the local police service..

[Audio] The moment a fire investigation which started under the authority of Section 14 of the FPPA, identifies something that the investigator believes may be suggestive of an intentional act, there is a transition of investigative authority required. We need to remember that investigations under the FPPA are based solely on facts and evidence as supported by the scientific method. Therefore the fire investigator needs to remove themselves from consider motive ( Mens Rea) as that is a part of a criminal mindset, which is not covered under the authority of the FPPA. Therefore, when a fire investigator uncovers evidence that suggests a fire may be incendiary, they need to immediately stop their investigation. Back out of the fire scene, maintain scene security, and notify the appropriate authorities. In Ontario, this would include notification of the local police service that you believe a criminal act may have occurred, you are also obligated as an Assistant to the Fire Marshal, to notify the OFM pursuant to the Fire Marshal Directive. Failure to stop the investigation at the time that the investigator transitions, may result in any further evidence being inadmissible in a criminal proceeding, as it was obtained illegally and not pursuant to a search warrant issued under the Criminal Code. This crucial transition of investigative authority needs to be clearly identified in both field notes, and in the investigators final fire investigation report..

[Audio] The other major criteria where a local fire investigator should stop, and transition their investigative authority, is where fires or explosions meet the thresholds identified in the Fire Marshal's Directive regarding the notification of fires and explosions. One of the biggest advantages of this is that the OFM fire investigators are not only considered expert investigators, they also have access to tools and expertise that most municipalities do not. For example, forensic engineers, portable x-ray equipment, 3-D scanning capabilities, and access to the Centre for Forensic Sciences laboratory. It is also much more likely that fires meeting this notification threshold may end up in a court proceeding, so there is an advantage to a municipal investigator to tie into provincial resources to assist and/or take over these more complex investigations. The other consideration is that a fatal fire, even if not suspicious, transitions the investigative authority to the Coroners Act. This requires the municipal fire investigator to stop, back out, and notify their local police service who act as the Coroner's Constable under the Coroners Act. A fatal fire is also covered under the notification requirement to the OFM as noted in the Fire Marshal's Directive..

[Audio] In Ontario, police services and the OFM Fire Investigators have access to send exhibits to the Centre for Forensic Sciences in Toronto. CFS conducts scientific investigations in cases involving injury or death for crimes against persons or property. Typically, municipal fire investigators do not have access to send exhibits to CFS, which is why it is rare for municipal investigators to take such exhibits. Some examples are, carpet samples to look for ignitable liquids ( ILs), or toxicology reports of deceased victims to see if there is evidence of drug or alcohol influence, and so forth. CFS has sstrict packaging, collection and submission criteria which must be met. Exhibits sent to CFS must be correctly labelled, and the required testing must be clearly identified. For example, if a sample is sent in to look for ignitable liquids, the lab may not run a chemical analysis on the sample as well. So investigators need to be very clear about what it is they are asking the lab to identify when sending in an exhibit. Continuity of the exhibit from the time it was seized to the time that it has been examined and throughout the court proceedings must be maintained to avoid arguments that the exhibit being presented was contaminated. This is also important in maintaining continuity of the scene from the time of the event to the conclusion of the scene examination. Although it is rare for municipal fire investigators to take samples to send to a laboratory for analysis, it is a requirement to be able to do this under the NFPA standards, so this course will cover the collection and processing of exhibits for this purpose. Potentially a fire service may be called upon to also assist another agency with the collection of an exhibit, so understanding the correct way to process exhibits is a bona fide requirement of a fire investigator..

[Audio] Fire investigators are often asked to provide updates to various media, and the public. With ever increasing use of social media, even local bystanders have become impromptu reporters. Care must be taken by fire investigators to not compromise investigations with the intentional or accidental release of information outside of authorized formats. Where departments have operational guidelines in place in regards to speaking to the media, such guidelines should be followed. In many cases, there are multiple agencies involved in a fire investigation. It is important that fire investigators participate with all agencies in determining who (if anyone) will be the designated spokesperson(s). It is also crucial that messaging is vetted by each agency to ensure that nothing is said that would compromise another agencies investigative authority. Some examples of key messaging that are generally safe to say, are messages that reinforce existing public safety messages. For example, saying things to the effect of "the fire is still under investigation, I would remind everyone about the importance of having working smoke alarms on all levels of their home." These types of generic messaging provide a " sound byte" to the media that they can use for their reporting, but does not compromise the investigation, and also continues to reinforce the first pillar of defense for fire safety (public education). If a fire investigator has authority and is willing to speak with media, it is advisable to set a specific time/place to have a media scrum providing all interested media outlets equal access to the same story. It is important to not get drawn into questions/ answers that would reveal personal information. Sometimes media will ask to confirm personal details, the generic answer of "those details are still under investigation" provides an easy answer that does not confirm or deny personal information..

[Audio] If you have further questions regarding the roles and responsibilities of fire investigators in Ontario, you should contact your instructor to seek those answers. It is crucially important that fire investigators clearly understand their roles and responsibilities..