ITEM PHOTO BY OWEN O’ROURKE
Lieutenant Sean Martin just completed a six-day advanced fire investigation course.
BY GAYLA CAWLEY
LYNN — Sean Martin knows how to fight a fire, but after passing a class he can now determine the cause.
The Lynn Fire Department lieutenant was one of two dozen public safety officials, and 17 firefighters, to complete the Massachusetts Firefighting Academy’s six-day Advanced Fire Investigation Course last month.
The training provides first responders with the skills to determine the origin and cause of fires and build prosecutable cases as an expert witness.
The course covers concepts of fire behavior, scene examination, fire scene documentation, evidence collection, witness interviewing and management of major fire investigations in more depth than the basic fire investigation class. Martin took the primary course, a prerequisite, last fall.
Students also learn about the legal issues of managing fire scenes, evidence collection and get to participate in a mock grand jury and trial.
As an investigator, Martin said he would be considered an expert witness. He was taught to investigate a fire. A building was designated and filled with furniture, where a fire was set with a specific cause. His job was to determine the origin.
Martin said the fire he investigated involved a child who used hairspray and lit his bed on fire.
In the case of a real fire, he would be able to jump in and do preliminary work.
“It opens up the door for me to start the investigation before the investigators get there,” Martin said.
Some of that work, he said, could be making sure that evidence is preserved, rather than destroyed. He can also offer his expert opinion in a courtroom, as to what he believes caused a potential fire.
Martin called completing the course “an eye opening experience.”
“When there is a fire, the goal is to always extinguish a fire with the least amount of damage as possible,” he said. “Now I see the other side. We want to preserve the evidence.”
Martin’s goal is to become a member of the Lynn Fire Investigations Unit. But, for now, his experience investigating fires is limited.
He also plans to become a Certified Fire Investigator, which is accredited by the National Board of Fire Service Professional Qualifications and the Forensic Specialties Accreditation Board.
To get there, Martin said he would have to investigate a certain number of fires and then take a tough exam. As the number of fires have dwindled across the state and country, it may be a little tougher to achieve.
Martin has been with Lynn Fire for nine years. He was promoted to lieutenant three years ago. He was also a firefighter in Billerica for three years.
Gayla Cawley can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @GaylaCawley