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Arson > Questions > Flashcards

Questions Flashcards

1
Q

What combination of elements is needed to start a fire?

A

Oxygen, heat and fuel

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2
Q

What are the 3 non-intentional causes of fire?

A
  • Carelessness
  • Faults
  • Nature
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3
Q

What are the powers conferred by section 28 of the fire service act 1975 on a person in charge of the fire service?

A
  1. Enter private property
  2. Close roads
  3. Remove vehicles impeding the fire service, and to break in to vehicles if necessary
  4. Do anything that is reasonably necessary to protect and preserve life
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4
Q

When will fire service notify police?

A
  • A death
  • suspicious circumstances
  • serious injury
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5
Q

The Fire Service Investigator will liaise with the Police Fire Investigation Liaison officer about what 4 things?

A
  1. Hand over of the scene
  2. Access to the fire scene
  3. Process for examination and investigation
  4. Identification and collection of evidence at the fire scene
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6
Q

What are the police responsibilities at a fire scene and examination?

A
  • Conduct the criminal investigation or coronial enquiry
  • Undertake responsibility for the protection, collection and recording of forensic evidence
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7
Q

What should police consider when guarding and controlling a fire scene?

A
  • ensure the scene is not interfered with
  • exclude and control members of the public
  • preserve evidence
  • preventing looting
  • be aware of hot spots after being extinguished and watch for reigniting
  • watch for suspects
  • identify witnesses from onlookers
  • report all matters to O/C and/or scene coordinator
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8
Q

Initial action at a suspicious fire?

A
  • Brief informant interview
  • Secure and control scene
  • Initial interview with Specialist fire investigator
  • interview incident controller
  • ensure the scene is controlled and safe prior to interviewing fire specialist
  • if suspicious hold a regroup briefing conference
  • conduct a plan and assign tasks
  • situation update comms and request specialist teams from fire and police as required
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9
Q

Who are the three people you should interview on initial action at a fire scene?

A
  • informant
  • specialist fire investigator or O/C fire in attendance
  • incident controller at the scene
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10
Q

Who MUST you liaise with at fire scene?

A

Fire service incident controller

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11
Q

Questions to ask the fire incident controller?

A
  • time and date of the call
  • what appliances attended
  • the state of the fire when fire staff arrived
  • action fire staff taken, particularly when breached or forced entry or broken doors / windows
  • any information they have about building security
  • how the scene has been altered
  • their assessment of what they believe
  • opinions of the informant
  • details of people or vehicles
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12
Q

When conducting a prelim internal examination, where should you start?

A

From the least damaged, into the most damaged and the seat of the fire

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13
Q

What should you note during a preliminary internal exam?

A
  • low stock
  • signs of hardship
  • missing family photos, furniture and personal items
  • lack of clothing
  • rifled possessions
  • position of clothes of not in wardrobe
  • open filing cabinet or missing documents
  • forced entry
  • presence of accelerants
  • other seats from attempts
  • owner/occupier attitude during assessment
  • unusual smells or burn patterns
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14
Q

What is the purpose of holding a conference after a suspicious fire?

A

Scene examination planning to lead to successful investigation

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15
Q

Conferences must occur during scene examination and assist with?

A
  • assessment of information gained
  • possible motives
  • reconstruction
  • Identifying suspects
  • Planning further enquiries
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16
Q

What should be done during/after a conference?

A
  • Record all decisions made and the reasons made
  • Complete a detailed plan of action (including timings and specific roles)
  • Risk Assessment
17
Q

What must you consider to identify the best method of protection in a fire scene?

A
  1. An assessment of the unstable environment and injuries that could be sustained from the fire scene hazards
  2. A strategy to prevent an occurrence or to mitigate its impact
18
Q

What should an external examination take into account?

A
  • adjoining premises which often reveal:
  • Accelerant containers
  • Attempts at forced entry
  • Broken windows
  • Forced Doors
  • Nearby alleyways/streets/driveways
  • Yards and outbuildings of the fire effected property
  • Periphery of the structure itself
  • Distance debris was scattered, particularly if drums or cylinders have exploded
19
Q

What may the surrounding area of the premise reveal?

A
  • Accelerant containers
  • Contents of outbuildings missing
  • Property run-down
  • Business appears to be struggling
20
Q

What may the damaged structure itself reveal?

A
  • Jemmy marks or other signs of forced entry on windows or doors
  • Window glass broken before the fire was ignited
  • Burn patterns above doors and windows and “V” shaped burn patterns on external cladding
21
Q

During a Detailed Internal Examination, what observations will the SFI observe, note and take into account?

A
  • Smoke deposits and burn patterns
  • Spalling
  • Damage to wall studs
  • Damage to roofing timbers
  • Damage to window sills and door edges
  • Soot deposits on window glass and craze patterns
  • Floor areas burned through
  • Skirting board damage
  • Elimination of false low burns
  • Removal of fire debris
  • Underfloor inspection
22
Q

In determining the seat of the fire, list some of the matters the SFI should consider? (5 things)

A
  • Witness reports
  • When they first noticed the fire and where they were at the time
  • The state of the fire at that time
  • Wind Direction and speed, and the weather
  • Direction of spread
  • Colour of the flames and smoke
  • Severity of the damage
  • Depth of charring
  • Presence of starting devices
  • Reports and opinions of other specialists
23
Q

What will the Specialist Fire Investigator be able to determine at the conclusion of the examination?

A
  • Area of Origin
  • Point of origin
  • The seat of the fire
24
Q

What steps should be taken when dealing with exhibits?

A
  1. Photograph in situ, label the exhibits, and preserve them in a container
  2. Use approved arson kits if these are available; if not, use any suitable containers such as unused 4L paint tins
  3. Take these control samples:
    - Charred timber & ashes or debris from the seat of the fire for examination & comparison with samples from other points
    - Any accelerants found near the scene
    - Soil from the surrounding area
25
Q

What is ‘best practice’ when it comes to packaging bodies/body parts?

A

Use bubble wrap to secure the body parts – packaged in a clearly marked and protected boxing
Ensure that the body has cooled prior to wrapping

26
Q

What are some indications of a deliberately lit fire?

A
  • Evidence of accelerant – such as: containers, traces in debris, smell, unusually rapid spread or intensity of fire, uneven burning, burning behind boards where liquid has run through cracks, multiple seats of fire
  • Evidence of intentional interference – such as: tampering with the alarm or sprinkler system, hindering access, misdirecting firefighters
  • Evidence of intentional removal of valuable property, or substitution of property
  • Signs that furniture was rearranged to create a fire base
  • Signs that windows and skylights were opened to create a draught
  • Foreign material and objects, such as screws/batteries, that might be part of a device
  • Signs a crime had been committed. The property may have been burned to destroy evidence. Even when a building has been burnt to the ground, the state of the recovered locks and fasteners may show whether it was secure at the time of the fire
  • Signs that a heater, souldering iron or other electrical appliance has been left on
  • Inconsistencies (for example, that a fire is rapid burning but there is no obvious cause)
  • Unusual burn patterns or unusual time factors (For example that the fire started after the building was secured)
27
Q

Common methods of setting fires?

A

Candles
Chemical lighters
Electrical apparatus
Electric Matches
Matches and cigarette
Molotov cocktails
Timing Devices
Trailers

28
Q

List some general enquiries that should be undertaken for a suspicious fire investigation

A

Submit articles to ESR
Enter stolen items into NIA
Obtain reports from SFI
Stimulate flow of information to identify suspects (media releases
Plan enquiries and interviews (owner/occupier, person that last secured, Fire finder, Fire alarmer)
Area canvas
Think about possible motives
Contact the insurance company
If similar fires suggest a fire-bug – organise special patrols, prevention methods
Inform local intel and FILO about similar fires and suspects
Weather conditions at the time
Maintain contact with owner

29
Q

What 3 steps should a scene guard take on arrival at an explosion scene?

A

1 Remember there may be a secondary device anywhere. Do not handle or interfere with anything unfamiliar
2 Do not use cellphones, portable radios or other transmitting devices
3 Evacuate the scene to a distance of at least 100metres

30
Q

What must you do when a fire has been started by an explosive?

A

Clear the scene in case a secondary device is present

31
Q

Characteristics of an explosion. What to look for?

A

Cratering
Spead of Debris
Shredding of materials
Smell peculiar to the exploded material. Eg. Almonds
Overlay of dust
Shrapnel Marks

32
Q

Describe the ‘Clean Path Method’

A

Creating a path to the centre of the explosion for experts to retrieve explosive residues, by laying a clean unused roll of plastic or by using approved stepping plates.

Have the ESR analyst start swabbing the area immediately (work outwards from the seat of the explosion

Vertical sheets of iron adjacent to the blast, such as street signs and fencing, are often good sources of residue.

33
Q

What is the difference signs between a gas explosion and someone setting an explosive?

A

Explosions caused by gas generally cover a wider area than those caused by an explosive and do not leave a crater.

Also medical evidence to show that the suspect/victim inhaled gas prior to the explosion.

34
Q

What questions should you ask the owner in a preliminary interview?

A

When the premises were last secured
Whether s/he knows the cause of the fire
The details of any suspects and any insurance
Type of business
Actions leading up to the fire

35
Q

What enquiries should be made with the Insurance companies?

A

Services of an assessor, to value the building and the damage

Particulars of the insurance on the premises and their contents

Copies of insurance policies
Information on prior claims
Details of any:
- Recent increase in cover
- Over-insurance

36
Q

If a tenant in a house is cooking, and the food burns the house down, what offence are they liable for? State case law.

A

No criminal liability because 267(1)(b) R Wilson applies, tenancy means there is an interest in the property

37
Q

What is needed by prosecution to prove ‘Providing explosives to commit a crime’ Sec 272 Crimes Act 1961? State the case law also.

A

It must be proved that the offender knowingly had the substance in his possession and also that he knew it to be an explosive. – R v Hallam

38
Q

Attempted Arson: To be guilty of an attempt to commit an offence what must be proved?

A

That the person intended to commit the offence
That the person took a real and substantial step toward achieving that aim

Arson (1 decks)

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