Fire Investigator News - The IAAI-FIT® Credential

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The IAAI-FIT® Credential

Get recognition for your work on CFITrainer.Net®

Since CFITrainer.Net® has been delivering programs, we have often been asked, "What do I do with the training I receive on CFITrainer®?" The answer really depends on the user's needs and where they are in the profession. The experienced investigator, who holds a certification such as IAAI-CFI® or one from another certifying organization, may need the programs for continuing education or re-certification. The users who are just entering the profession either on the public or private side may be using the programs to develop their knowledge of the fire and its investigation.

The IAAI has developed the IAAI-FIT® (Fire Investigator Technician) credential specifically for individuals who perform fire investigation functions but may not have the training and experience - or need - to qualify for the IAAI-CFI® (Certified Fire Investigator) certification. IAAI-FIT® is designed for those who may be responsible for the initial origin and cause investigation, or those individuals in related professions who support the fire investigators at fire incidents. Selected job performance requirements (JPRs) from NFPA 1021, NFPA 1033 and NFPA 1037 were used to define the requirements for this credential. The IAAI-FIT® credential allows investigators and support personnel to validate the training and experience they have attained through training and education and programs available on CFITrainer.Net®.

For more information on IAAI-FIT® and other IAAI credentials and certifications visit the IAAI at www.firearson.com.

Fire Investigation Technician

News Archive

80 Available Training Programs Filters View All

Topic

Accidental Causes

Accreditation & Certification

Alternative Energy

Building Construction & Systems

Case Studies

Documentation

Electricity and Electrical Systems

Ethics

Evidence

Explosions

Fatalities

Fire Science & Fire Flow Analysis

For Fire Officers

For Non-Investigators

Insurance

Interviewing

Legal Issues

Marine Fires

Methodology

Motor Vehicle Fires

Natural Gas

Professional Development & Qualifications

Report Writing

Safety

Testifying

Wildland Fires

Youth-Set Fires

IAAI Credential

IAAI-FIT® Track A

IAAI-FIT® Track B

IAAI-ECT®

IAAI-CI®

IAAI Motor Vehicle Fire Credential Endorsement

CFITrainer.Net Multi-Program Certificate

Fire Investigation for Fire Officers

Principles of Fire Investigation

NFPA 1033 JPR

4.1.1 Performance Requirements

4.1.2 Scientific Method

4.1.3 Site Safety Assessment

4.1.4 Liaison With Other Professionals

4.1.5 Adhere To Legal and Regulatory Requirements

4.1.6 Investigative Team and ICS

4.2.1 Secure the Fireground

4.2.2 Conduct Exterior Survey

4.2.3 Conduct Interior Survey

4.2.4 Interpret Fire Patterns

4.2.5 Determine Fire Development

4.2.6 Examine and Remove Fire Debris

4.2.7 Reconstruct Area of Origin

4.2.8 Inspect the Performance of Building Systems

4.2.9 Discriminate the Effects of Explosions From Other Types of Damage

4.3.1 Diagram the Scene

4.3.2 Photographically Document the Scene

4.3.3 Construct Investigative Notes

4.4.1 Manage Evidence From Victims and Fatalities

4.4.2 Locate, Document, Collect, Label, Package, and Store Evidence

4.4.3 Select Evidence for Analysis

4.4.4 Maintain a Chain of Custody

4.4.5 Dispose of Evidence

4.5.1 Develop an Interview Plan

4.5.2 Conduct Interviews

4.5.3 Evaluate Interview Information

4.6.1 Gather Reports and Records

4.6.2 Evaluate the Investigative File

4.6.3 Coordinate expert Resources

4.6.4 Establish Evidence as to Motive and/or Opportunity if an Incendiary Fire

4.6.5 Formulate an Opinion Concerning Origin, Cause, or Responsibility for the Fire

4.7.1 Prepare a Written Report

4.7.2 Express Investigative Findings Verbally

4.7.3 Testify During Legal Proceedings

NFPA 1033 1.3.7 Topic

1.3.7 (1) Fire Science

1.3.7 (2) Fire Chemistry

1.3.7 (3) Thermodynamics

1.3.7 (4) Thermometry

1.3.7 (5) Fire Dynamics

1.3.7 (6) Explosion Dynamics

1.3.7 (7) Computer Fire Modeling

1.3.7 (8) Fire Investigation

1.3.7 (9) Fire Analysis

1.3.7 (10) Fire Investigation Methodology

1.3.7 (11) Fire Investigation Technology

1.3.7 (12) Hazardous Materials

1.3.7 (13) Failure Analysis and Analytical Tools

1.3.7 (14) Fire Protection Systems

1.3.7 (15) Evidence Documentation, Collection, and Preservation

1.3.7 (16) Electricity and Electrical Systems

Live Event - Report Writing for Fire Investigators 10.21.2021 1pm Eastern

The class covers how to write clear, concise, factual, and objective fire investigation reports. It will specifically describe the components of a proper origin and cause report. The class will explain how the scientific method can assist you in locating and describing the fire’s origin and determining and documenting the root cause of a fire. It will also explain all the necessary components of a complete fire investigation report and will give specific examples of the correct words to use.

Live Event - Improving Fire Investigator Health and Safety - 11.09.21 - 1pm Eastern

This presentation provides attendees with an understanding of the many health and safety hazards present in the post-fire environment to identify the situations where toxic gases, vapors, and particulates exist and the dangers of these substances, along with other hazards, pose. Attendees should then understand the need to use personal protective equipment, including proper respiratory protection, in the post-fire environment.

Live Event - Post Blast Investigations - 11.18.21 1pm Eastern

This course will provide the participants with the requisite knowledge for conducting post blast investigations. The course will begin by reviewing the various types of explosives, explosions, and explosive effects. This will include instruction on the process of identifying an accidental explosion versus a criminal act. In addition, there will be a discussion on improvised explosive devices (IEDs)/ Improvised Incendiary Devices (IID’s), the components that comprise IED/IID, and the forensic value of those components.

Accreditation, Certification, and Certificates

This program provides a primer on accreditation, certification, and certificates for fire investigation training.

Alternative Fuel Vehicles

This program explains those basics for vehicles fueled by compressed natural gas (CNG), liquefied natural gas (LNG), propane (also known as liquefied petroleum gas, or LPG), and hydrogen (also known as fuel cell technology).

An Analysis of The Station Nightclub Fire

A fire occurred on the night of Feb. 20, 2003, in The Station nightclub at 211 Cowesett Avenue, West Warwick, Rhode Island.

Arc Mapping Basics

Arc Mapping, or Arc Fault Circuit Analysis, uses the electrical system to help reconstruct a scene, providing investigators with a means of determining the area of a fire’s origin.

Basic Electricity

This module introduces basic electrical concepts, including: terminology, atomic theory and electricity, Ohm’s Law, Joule’s Law, AC and DC power.

Charleston Sofa Super Store Fire

A fire occurred on the evening of June 18, 2007, in the Sofa Super Store in Charleston, SC that resulted in the deaths of nine fire fighters.

Charting Your Career Path In Fire Investigation

This module looks at the many ways fire investigators enter and grow in the profession through academia, the fire service, law enforcement, insurance, and engineering.

Communicating the Value of Membership in the IAAI

This module will present a description of the IAAI organization.

Critical Evaluation and Testing of Commonly Reported Accidental Causes

This module takes a closer look at four of the most commonly-reported accidental fire causes according to "NFPA Fact Sheet.

Critical Thinking Solves Cases

This program brings three highly experienced fire investigators and an attorney with experience as a prosecutor and civil litigator together for a round table discussion.

The Deposition Part 1: Format, Content, and Preparation

One of the legal proceedings that may require the fire investigator to testify is a deposition. Depositions are often related to civil proceedings, but more and more jurisdictions are using them in criminal cases.

The Deposition Part 2: Questioning Tactics and Effective Responses

Deposing attorneys employ a variety of tactics to learn about the expert witness giving testimony, to try to unsettle that witness to see how he/she handles such pressure, and to probe for weaknesses to exploit.

Digital Photography and the Fire Investigator

The program discusses the basics of digital photography for fire investigators as well as software and editing procedures for digital images intended as evidence.

Discovery in Civil Cases

This self-paced program is an introduction to discovery in civil proceedings such as fire loss claims and product defect lawsuits.

Discovery in Criminal Cases

This self-paced program is an introduction to discovery in criminal proceedings.

DNA

This module covers the foundation of DNA evidence: defining, recognizing, collecting, and testing.

Documenting the Event

This program provides a practical overview of how to perform the baseline documentation tasks that occur at every scene.

Effective Investigation and Testimony

This module will discuss the techniques and strategies for conducting a proper science-based fire scene investigation and effectively presenting an investigator’s findings in court as an expert witness.

Electric & Hybrid Vehicle Design Basics

This program explains the basic principles of how electric and hybrid vehicles are designed and work, including major systems and typical components.

Electric & Hybrid Vehicle Fires

This program presents critical safety information for how to interact with electric and hybrid vehicles.

Electrical Safety

This module presents critical electrical safety practices that every fire investigator should implement at every scene, every time.

Emerging Technologies in Fire Investigation

In this program, we will look at emerging technologies that fire investigators are integrating into their daily investigative work with great success.

Ethical Duties Beyond the Fire Scene

This self-paced program examines the fire investigator's ethical duties beyond the fire scene.

Ethics & Social Media

As social media has emerged as a powerful force in interpersonal communications, fire investigators are being confronted with new questions...

Ethics and the Fire Investigator

Should you work for a private lab as a consultant if you are on an Arson Task Force? How about accepting discounts from the local hardware store as a “thanks” for a job well done on a fire they had last year?

Evidence Examination: What Happens at the Lab?

This module takes investigators into the forensic laboratory and shows them what happens to the different types of fire scene evidence that are typically submitted for testing.

Explosion Dynamics

This module teaches the foundational knowledge of explosion dynamics, which is a necessary precursor to investigating an explosion scene.

Fire Chemistry

This module addresses the foundations of fire chemistry and places it within the context of fire scene investigations.

Fire Dynamics Calculations - Version 2.0

The program is designed to introduce a new Palm/Pocket PC application called CFI Calculator to users and provide examples of how it can be used by fire investigators in the field.

Fire Flow Analysis

This module examines these concepts to help all professionals tasked with determining fire origin and cause better understand fire flow dynamics so they can apply that knowledge to both to fire investigation and to fire attack.

Fire Investigation for Fire Officers

This module provides a road map for fire officers to integrate and navigate their fire investigation duty with all their other responsibilities and describes where to obtain specific training in fire investigation.

Fire Investigator Scene Safety

The evaluation of hazards and the assessment of the relative risks associated with the investigation of fires and explosions are critical factors in the management of any investigation.

Fire Protection Systems

This module will describe the most commonly encountered fire protection systems.

Fundamentals of Interviewing

This module presents best practices in preparing for and conducting the informational interview with witnesses in the fire investigation case.

Fundamentals of Residential Building Construction

This module provides instruction on the fundamentals of residential building construction with an eye toward how building construction affects fire development.

The HAZWOPER Standard

This module provides introductory information on the Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response (HAZWOPER) standard – 29 CFR 1910.120.

How First Responders Impact The Fire Investigation

This module teaches first responders, including fire, police and EMS, how to make critical observations.

The Impact of Ventilation in Building Structures on Fire Development

The program examines the importance of assessing the impact of ventilation on a fire.

Insurance and the Fire Investigation

This program discusses how to access insurance information, understand insurance documents, ask key questions of witnesses, and apply the information learned.

Introduction to Appliances

This module offers a basic introduction about how some selected major appliances operate.

Introduction to Evidence

This program introduces the fire investigator to the issues related to the collection, handling and use of evidence related to a fire investigation.

Introduction to Fire Dynamics and Modeling

This program takes you inside the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) archives of some of the most interesting and instructive test burns and fire model simulations they have ever conducted.

Introduction to Youth-Set Fires

The program provides foundational background on the scope of the youth-set fire problem, the importance of rigorous fire investigation in addressing this problem, and the role of key agencies in the response to a youth-set fire.

Investigating Fatal Fires

This module provides a thorough understanding of the ways an investigation changes when a fire-related death occurs.

Investigating Fire and Explosion Incidents Involving a Line-Of-Duty Death

This self-paced program will help you understand what to expect at a fire where an LODD has occurred, what your role is, how to interact with others, and how to handle special circumstances at the scene.

Investigating Motor Vehicle Fires

This program will introduce the fire investigator to the basic methodologies use to investigate vehicle fires.

Investigating Natural Gas Systems

This module presents the role natural gas can play in fire ignition, fuel load, and spread; the elements of investigating a fire in a residence where natural gas is present; and the potential role the gas utility or the municipality can play an investigation.

Legal Aspects of Investigating Youth-Set Fires

Podcasts

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CFITrainer.Net is the online resource for training fire investigators at all levels. The broad-based training modules assist fire investigators in meeting the topical areas contained in NFPA 1033, Standard for Professional Qualifications for Fire Investigators. In addition to individual program training, CFITrainer.Net offers multi program training certification, fire investigation podcasts, the Fire Scene Evidence Guide, and the latest fire investigation news. Register online to get started.