FIRE TECHNOLOGY AND ARSON INVESTIGATION

Strategies Used in Firefighting: c. to provide ventilation by giving

1. Locate the fire access to places that are hard to reach
2. Confine the fire
3. Extinguish the fire Forms of ground ladders
4. Exposures a. Wall
b. Extension
Factors to Consider in Extinguishment: c. Hook or straight ladder
1. Time d. Attic ladder
2. Weather (temperature, humidity,
wind) LADDER TERMINOLOGY
3. Fire (ex. Extent, location, bldg 1. Bed ladder - the lowest section of an
construction, contents involved) extension ladder
4. Occupancy 2. Fly ladder - the top section of an
5. Ventilation (used for clearing the extension ladder
bldg of smoke and gases) 3. Butt - the bottom end of a ladder
4. Heel - the part of the ladder that
Types of Ventilation: touches the ground
a. Vertical ventilation - must be worked 5. Halyard - a rope or cable used to
from the top to bottom raised the fly ladder
b. Cross or horizontal ventilation - used if 6. Pawl or dog - the mechanism
gases have not reached the higher located at the end of the fly ladder that locks
level through the opening of to the bed ladder
windows 7. Rung - the cross member of the
c. Mechanical force ventilation - a method ladder that is used for climbing
whereby a device such as smoke ejector is 8. Top or tip - it is the top part of the
utilized to remove faster excessive heat and ladder
dense smoke 9. Hooks - part of a ladder that is used
to hook over a roof peak, sills, or walls
Factors to determine the location for the where the heel does not rest on a
opening: foundation. (roof type ladders)
1. Location of intensity of fire 10. Stops - made of metal or wood
2. Highest point on the roof blocks used to prevent the fly of an
3. Direction of wind extension ladder from extending out further
4. Existing exposure from the ladder
5. Extent of fire 11. Guides - light metal strips of an
6. Obstruction extension ladder that guides the fly ladder
while it is being raised or lowered
ADDITIONAL BASIC TACTICS USED
IN EXTINGUISHING FIRE
1. RESCUE - any action taken by the ARSON INVESTIGATIVE GUIDE AND
firefighters to remove occupants/ persons PROCEDURES
from building/ hazards to a safety place
2. OVERHAUL - a complete and ARSON
detailed checked of the structures and - The willful and malicious burning of
materials involved in the fire to make sure all
that every spark and ember has been kinds of buildings and structures
extinguished and to have assurance against including personal properties
re-ignition
3. SALVAGE - an action taken by the INVESTIGATION
firefighters in preventing excessive damage - an art that deals with the identity and
by fire, water with the use of salvage cover location of the offender and provides
or by removing materials out from the evidence of his guilt in criminal proceedings
burning building
ELEMENTS OF ARSON
Types of ladder 1. Actual burning took place
1. Ground ladders (10 to 55 ft. long) 2. Actual burning is done with
2. Aerial ladders malicious intent
3. The actual burning is done by
Purposes of ladders person(s) legally and criminally liable
a. for rescue
b. to stretch line into a fire building LAW AND JURISPRUDENCE
 FIRE TECHNOLOGY AND ARSON INVESTIGATION
The law on arson in the Philippines is
covered by Articles 320 to 326 of the
Revised Penal Code, as amended by PD
No. 1613, PD No. 1744, and Sec. 50 Rule
VIII IRR of RA 6975 which provides that the
Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) shall have
the power to investigate all causes of fires
and, if necessary, file the proper complaint
with the City/Provincial prosecutor who has
jurisdiction over arson cases.
LAWS ON ARSON
1. Article 320 – 326 of the Revised
Penal Code
- defines arson, its forms and
penalties
2. PD 1613 – the law amending the law
on arson
- defining the prima facie
evidence of arson
3. RA 7659
- An Act to Impose Death Penalty on
Certain Heinous Crimes, amending for that
purpose the Revised Penal Code as
amended, other special laws, and for other
purposes
4. RA 6975 Sec. 54
- provides that the Fire Bureau shall
have the power to investigate all causes of
fires and if necessary file the proper
complaint with the City/Provincial
Prosecutor who has jurisdiction over the
case
What Constitutes Arson?
1. Burning
2. Willfulness – means intentional and
implies that the act was done purposely and
intentionally
3. Malice – denotes hatred or ill will or
a desire for revenge; deliberate intention of
doing unjustified harm for the satisfaction of
doing it
4. Motive – the moving cause which
induces the commission of a crime;
something that leads or influences a person
to do something
5. Intent – the purpose or design with
which the act is done and involves the will;
an essential element of crime, motive is not
Why is arson very hard to investigate?
Arson is one of the most difficult offenses to
investigate because the arsonist can be
able to set a fire and escape undetected.
The fire can consume the scene and
destroy much physical evidence of the
offense. Harder forms of evidence are often
buried in debris and grossly altered in
appearance.
What Constitutes Burning?
• The mere fact that a building is
scorched or discolored by heat is not
sufficient nor will bare intention or even an
attempt to burn a house amount to arson, if
no part of it is burned.
• Yet, if there is actual ignition of any
part of the building, arson is committed,
although there be no flame or the fire
immediately goes out of itself.
• To burn means to consume by fire
and in the case of arson, if the wood is
blackened but no fibers are wasted, there is
no burning, yet the wood need not be in
flame or blaze, and the burning of any part,
however, small is sufficient to constitute
arson, and if the house is charred in a single
place so as to destroy the fibers of the
wood, it is sufficient to constitute arson.
What is Attempted Arson?
• In attempted arson, it is not
necessary that there be a fire before the
crime is committed. No hard and fast rule is
laid down by the law as to the requirements
for attempted arson. The peculiar facts and
circumstances of a particular case should
carry more weight in the decision of the
case. Thus, a person intending to burn a
wooden structure, collects some rags,
soaks them in gasoline and places them
beside the wooden wall of the building.
When he is about to light a match to set fire
to the rags, he is discovered by another who
chases him away.
• The crime committed is attempted
arson, because the offender begins the
commission of the crime directly by overacts
(placing the rags soaked in gasoline beside
the wooden wall of the building and lighting
a match) but he does not perform all the
acts of execution (the setting of the fire to
the rags) due to the timely intervention of
another who chases away) the offender.
What is Frustrated Arson?
• In frustrated arson, the fact of having
set fire to some rags and jute sacks soaked
in kerosene oil and placed near the partition
of the entire soil of an inhabited house,
should not be qualified as a consummated
arson, in as much as no part of the house
had begun to burn, although fire would have
started in the said partition had it not been
extinguished on time. The crime committed
was frustrated arson.
What is Consummated Arson?
 FIRE TECHNOLOGY AND ARSON INVESTIGATION
• The offender did in fact set fire to the
roof of the house and said house was
partially burned. The crime was
consummated arson, notwithstanding the
fact that the fire afterwards extinguished for
once it has been started, the consummation
of the crime of arson does not depend upon
the extent of the damage caused.
• Setting fire to the contents of a
building constitutes the consummated crime
of setting fire to a building even if no part of
the building was burned.
Basis of Liability in Arson:
1. Kind and character of the building,
whether of public or private ownership.
2. Its location, whether in an
uninhabited place or in a populated place.
3. Extent of damage caused; and
4. The fact of its being inhabited or not.
Some of the Arson Evidence that the
Investigator should seek at the Fire scene
are the following:
1. Unusually rapid spread of the fire.
2. Where it originated?
3. Separate fires – when two or more
separate fires break-out within a building,
the fire is certainly suspicious.
4. Unusual odors – the odor of
gasoline, alcohol, kerosene and other
inflammable liquids are indicated by their
characteristics and oftentimes, arsonists are
trapped because of this tell tale signs.
5. Objects that appear to be foreign to
the scene such as cans, candles, matches,
explosives, electrical appliances such as
irons, heating elements, clocks, radios,
flammables, trailers, etc.
6. Charring pattern may indicate fire
characteristics. The fact that the fire feeds
on combustible while propagating itself,
indicates that the char will generally be
deepest from where the fire originates.
When a fire is extinguished quickly, the
charring is only slightly below the surface.
Fire burning for a longer period of time will
indicate a char that is deep and
pronounced. These facts are most apparent
in the charring of wood as a fire burns. The
charring from fire on woods looks like the
hide of a black alligator. Fire extinguished
quickly on wood will show a large
alligatoring pattern that has not penetrate
the wood to any extent. Fire burning for a
long period of time on wood will show small
alligatoring pattern but the char will go deep
into the wood. The direction of fire can also
be taken into consideration with charring.
The exposed side of combustible will have a
deeper char than the unexposed side.
7. Evidence of forcible entry or lack of
same may be important depending on the
circumstances at the time of the fire. If the
investigator determines there was no
forcible entry and finds that the building was
secured prior to discovery of the fire, he can
reasonably suspect there is possibility that
the person who sets the fire entered the
building with a key. Doors and windows
showing signs of forced entry may point to
arson preceded by burglary or arson by
someone without a key to the premises.
Motives of Arson Motive
• Motive is the moving cause which
induces a person to commit a crime.
Is Motive Necessary to be proven in
Criminal Proceedings?
• No. motive is not necessary to be
proven in criminal proceedings but once
motive is shown, then intent can easily
established.
• In the crime of arson, the distinction
between motive and intent is clearly
defined. INTENT is a material element of
arson while motive is not. INTENT is the
purpose of design with which the act is done
and involves the will while MOTIVE is what
induces the criminal.
Motive Can Be Established By:
I. Economic Gain
A. Insurance fraud with the assured
directly benefiting:
1. Desire to move
– the premises may no longer be
desirable because of the condition of the
building, the fact that the quarters are
outgrown or because of the locality.
2. Disposing of Merchandise
– the stocks on hand may have lost
value by reason of the seasonal nature of
the business, obsolesce, scarcity of
materials necessary to complete the
contracts, overstock
in the absence of expected order or a
changing market.
3. Property Transaction
– the business itself may no longer be
desirable because of impending
liquidation, settlement of an estate of
which it is a part, the need for cash,
prospective failure, the comparatively
greater value of the land, or the
comparatively greater value of the
insurance benefits.
B. Profit by the Perpetrator other than
the assured:
1. Insurance agents wishing business
 FIRE TECHNOLOGY AND ARSON INVESTIGATION
2. Insurance adjusters desiring to
adjust a loss by securing a contract 3.
Business competitors
4. Persons seeking jobs
as protection personnel
5. Salvagers
6. Contractors wishing to rebuild or
wreck
Concealment of Crime:
□ the arsonists may set fire to a building in
order to conceal a projected or past crime.
He may wish to divert attention in order to
loot the burning premises or steal in other
places. The burning may be for the purpose
of destroying evidences.
Punitive Measure:
- An arsonists may use fire as a
means of punishing another person for
reason of jealousy, hatred or revenge.
Intimidation or Economic Disabling:
- The fire may be used as a weapon
of the saboteurs, the strikers or the
racketeers to intimidate or to disable
economically as a step toward forcing
submission to certain demands.
Pyromania
– is the uncontrollable impulse of a
person to burn anything without motivation.
Pyromaniacs usually do not run away from
the scene of the crime, usually alone and
feel satisfied watching the flame
Types of Pyromaniacs:
1. Abnormal Youth – Epileptics,
imbeciles and morons may set fire without
knowing the seriousness of the act.
2. The Hero Type – a person may set
fire on a building, subsequently pretends to
discover it and turn in the alarm so that he
will appear a hero to the public. A person
may burn a building and endeavor to
achieve spectacular rescue in order to
attract the attention of spectators.
3. Alcoholics and Drug Addicts –
persons who subject themselves to intense
artificial stimulants such as narcotics
sometimes develop a strong urge toward
incendiaries.
4. Sexual Deviates – some sex
perverts derive sexual stimulation from
setting a fire and watching the flame.
Frequently, he is chronic masturbator who
stimulates and enhances his sexual
gratification by means of arson.
Public Disturbance
- an offender may resort to arson as a
means of a public disturbance because a
fire attracts people and destruction causes
confusion that gives rise to attendant
problems that divert police attention
Vandalism
– is a general term denoting
intentional burning to destroy properties.
In determining motive, a fire investigator
concentrates on three major factors:
1. Points of origin of the fire
2. Modus operandi of the arsonist
3. Identify of persons who might
benefits from the fire.
Incendiary Materials
- materials used to start a fire;
combustible fuels
1. Arson Chemicals (liquids) – are
incendiary materials often used by arsonists
as accelerants. Possess excellent
properties. Examples: alcohol, benzene,
petroleum ether, gasoline, kerosene,
naptha, turpentine.
2. Gases as acetylene, butane, CO,
ethylene, hydrogen, natural gas, propane,
these are common gases resulting in fires
from explosion. These when mix with air
possess excellent in ignition properties and
when present in an enclosed area can lead
to explosion.
3. Solids as chlorates, perchlorates,
chromates, bichromates, nitrates,
permanganates – are typical families of
oxidizing agents which give off oxygen on
decomposition thus aiding in combustion.
FIRE CODE OF THE PHILIPPINES
Republic Act No. 9514
- Approved on December 19, 2008
- Repealed PD 1185
- known as the "Revised Fire Code of
the Philippines of 2008".
Definition of terms
Abatement - Any act that would remove or
neutralize a fire hazard.
Administrator- Any person who acts as
agent of the owner and manages the use of
a building for him.
 FIRE TECHNOLOGY AND ARSON INVESTIGATION
Blasting Agent - Any material or mixture
consisting of a fuel and oxidizer used to set
off explosives.
Cellulose Nitrate Or Nitro Cellulose - A
highly combustible and explosive compound
produced by the reaction of nitric acid with a
cellulose material.
CelluloseNitratePlastic(Pyroxylin) - Any
plastic substance, materials or compound
having cellulose nitrate (nitro cellulose) as
base.
Combustible, Flammable or
Inflammable - Descriptive of materials that
are easily set on fire.
Combustible Fiber - Any readily ignitable
and waste cloth, waste paper, kapok, hay,
straw, Spanish moss, excelsior and other
similar materials commonly used in
commerce.
Combustible Liquid - Any liquid having
a flash point at or above 37.8_C (100_F).
Corrosive Liquid - Any liquid which
causes fire when in contact with organic
matter or with certain chemicals.
Curtain Board - A vertical panel of non-
combustible or fire resistive materials
attached to and extending below the bottom
chord of the roof trusses, to divide the
underside of the roof into separate
compartments so that heat and smoke will
be directed upwards to a roof vent.
Cryogenic- Descriptive of any material
which by its nature or as a result of its
reaction with other elements produces a
rapid drop in temperature of the immediate
surroundings.
Damper- A normally open device installed
inside an air duct system which
automatically closes to restrict the passage
of smoke or fire.
Distillation - The process of first raising the
temperature in separate the more volatile
from the less volatile parts and then cooling
and condensing the resulting vapor so as to
produce a nearly purified substance.
Duct System- A continuous passageway
for the transmission of air.
Dust- A finely powdered substance which,
when mixed with air in the proper proportion
and ignited will cause an explosion.
Electrical Arc- An extremely hot luminous
bridge formed by passage of an electric
current across a space between two
conductors or terminals due to the
incandescence of the conducting vapor.
Ember- A hot piece or lump that remains
after a material has partially burned, and is
still oxidizing without the manifestation of
flames.
Finishes - Materials used as final coating of
a surface for ornamental or protective
purposes.
Fire - The active principle of burning,
characterized by the heat and light of
combustion.
Fire Trap - A building unsafe in case of fire
because it will burn easily or because it
lacks adequate exits or fire escapes.
Fire Alarm - Any visual or audible signal
produced by a device or system to warm the
occupants of the building or fire fighting
elements of the presence or danger of fire
to enable them to undertake immediate
action to save life and property and to
suppress the fire.
Fire Door - A fire resistive door prescribed
for openings in fire separation walls or
partitions.
Fire Hazard - Any condition or act which
increases or may cause an increase in the
probability of the occurrence of fire, or which
may obstruct, delay, hinder or interfere with
fire fighting operations and the safeguarding
of life and property.
Fire Lane - The portion of a roadway or
public way that should be kept opened and
unobstructed at all times for the expedient
operation of fire fighting units.
Fire Protective And Fire Safety
Device - Any device intended for the
protection of buildings or persons to include
but not limited to built-in protection system
such as sprinklers and other automatic
extinguishing system, detectors for heat,
smoke and combustion products and other
warning system components, personal
protective equipment such as fire blankets,
helmets, fire suits, gloves and other
garments that may be put on or worn by
persons to protect themselves during fire.
Fire Safety Constructions- Refers to
design and installation of walls, barriers,
 FIRE TECHNOLOGY AND ARSON INVESTIGATION
doors, windows, vents, means of egress,
etc. integral to and incorporated into a
building or structure in order to minimize
danger to life from fire, smoke, fumes or
panic before the building is evacuated.
These features are also designed to
achieve, among others, safe and rapid
evacuation of people through means of
egress sealed from smoke or fire, the
confinement of fire or smoke in the room or
floor of origin and delay their spread to other
parts of the building by means of smoke
sealed and fire resistant doors, walls and
floors. It shall also mean to include the
treatment of buildings components or
contents with flame retardant chemicals.
Flash Point- The minimum temperature at
which any material gives off vapor in
sufficient concentration to form an ignitable
mixture with air.
Forcing -A process where a piece of metal
is heated prior to changing its shape or
dimensions.
Fulminate- A kind of stable explosive
compound which explodes by percussion.
Hazardous Operation/Process - Any
act of manufacturing, fabrication,
conversion, etc., that uses or produces
materials which are likely to cause fires or
explosions.
Horizontal Exit - Passageway from
one building to another or through or
around a wall in approximately the same
floor level.
Hose Box - A box or cabinet where fire
hoses, valves and other equipment are
stored and arranged for fire fighting.
Hose Reel - A cylindrical device turning on
an
Hypergolic Fuel - A rocket or liquid
propellant which consists of combinations of
fuels and oxidizers which ignite
spontaneously on contact with each other.
Industrial Baking And Drying - The
industrial process of subjecting materials to
heat for the purpose of removing solvents or
moisture from the same, and/or to fuse
certain chemical salts to form a uniform
glazing the surface of materials being
treated.
Jumper - A piece of metal or an electrical
conductor used to bypass a safety device in
an electrical system.
Occupancy- The purpose for which a
building or portion thereof is used or
intended to be used.
Occupant - Any person actually occupying
and using a building or portions thereof by
virtue of a lease contract with the owner or
administrator or by permission or sufferance
of the latter.
Organic Peroxide - A strong oxidizing
organic compound which releases oxygen
readily. It causes fire when in contact with
combustible materials especially under
conditions of high temperature.
Overloading- The use of one or more
electrical appliances or devices which draw
or consume electrical current beyond the
designed capacity of the existing electrical
system.
Owner- The person who holds the legal
right of possession or title to a building or
real property.
Oxidizing Material- A material that readily
yields oxygen in quantities sufficient to
stimulate or support combustion.
Pressurized Or Forced Draft Burning
Equipment- Type or burner where the
fuel is subjected to pressure prior to
discharge into the combustion chamber
and/or which includes fans or other
provisions for the introduction of air at
above normal atmosphere pressure into the
same combustion chamber.
Public Assembly Building - Any building
or structure where fifty (50) or more people
congregate, gather, or assemble for any
purpose.
Public Way - Any street, alley or other strip
of land unobstructed from the ground to the
sky, deeded, dedicated or otherwise
permanently appropriated for public use.
Pyrophoric - Descriptive of any substance
that ignites spontaneously when exposed to
air.
Refining - A process where impurities
and/or deleterious materials are removed
from a mixture in order to produce a pure
element of compound. It shall also refer to
partial distillation and electrolysis.
Self-Closing Doors - Automatic closing
doors that are designed to confine smoke
and heat and delay the spread of fire.
 FIRE TECHNOLOGY AND ARSON INVESTIGATION

Smelting - Melting or fusing of metallic ores Collection of Gaseous samples Method of

or compounds so as to separate impurities
from pure metals.
Sprinkler System - An integrated network
of hydraulically designed piping installed in
a building, structure or area with outlets
arranged in a systematic pattern which
automatically discharges water when
activated by heat or combustion products
from a fire.
Standpipe System- A system of vertical
pipes in a building to which fire hoses can
be attached on each floor, including a
system by which water is made available to
the outlets as needed.
Vestibule - A passage hall or antechamber
between the outer doors and the interior
parts of a house or building.
Vertical Shaft - An enclosed vertical space
of passage that extends from floor to floor,
as well as from the base to the top of the
building.
Liquid accelerants may be collected with
a. New syringe
b. Siphoning device
c. Evidence container itself
d. Sterilize cotton balls or gauge pads
may also be used to absorbed the liquid
Where liquid accelerants are believed to
have become trapped in porous materials
such as concrete floor:
a. Lime
b. Diatomaceous earth
c. flour
Collection:
a. Use of commercially
available
b. Utilization evacuated air sampling
cans. These cans are specifically designed
for taking gaseous samples
c. Use of clean glass bottled filled with
distilled water. Distilled water use as it has
had most of the impurities removed from it.
This method simply require the investigator
poured the distilled water out of its bottle in
the atmosphere to be sampled. As distilled
water leaves the bottle it is replaced by the
gaseous sample
Guide on Interpreting the Damage on
Electrical Wire
Collection of Electrical Equipments and
Components
Before wires are cut, a photograph should
be taken of the wires, and the both ends of
the wire should be tagged and cut so that
they can be identified as one of the
following:
a. The device or appliance to which it
was attached or from which it was severed
b. The circuit breaker or fuse number
or location to which the wire was attached
or from which it was severed
c. The wire’s path or the route it took
between the device and the circuit protector,
electrical switches, receptacles,
thermostats, relays, junction boxes,
electrical distribution panels, and similar
equipment and components are often
collected as physical

Collection of liquid evidence absorbed by

solid materials including soils and sand:
a. Scooping
b. Sawing
c. Scraping
d. Core drilling
Collecting of Solid samples for accelerant
testing
Solid accelerant may be common
household materials and compounds or
dangerous chemicals. When collecting solid
accelerants:
a. The fire investigator must ensure
that the solid accelerant is maintained in
physical state in which is found
b. Some incendiary materials remain
Corrosive and Reactive
c. Ensure the corrosive nature of these
residue does not attack the packaging
container