FOCUS Fire Investigations
Fire Origin and Cause Using Science
Health & Safety
COVID-19
Even in the times today that COVID waxes and wanes we at FOCUS will still consider it important to take appropriate precautions to protect ourselves and others anytime we are outside of our own home.
The same health and safety practices FOCUS has always taken at fire scenes apply to any public meeting we may be a part of today.
FOCUS can safely document any scene: fire, water, wind, other structural damage thereby limiting the time you need to spend on the scene.
Mission Statement
The mission of FOCUS Fire Investigations is to provide its clients with the highest quality fire origin and cause investigation available to most correctly suit the needs of the client.
Values Statement
FOCUS Fire Investigations will use science to provide the most appropriate conclusions for any investigation.
FOCUS Fire Investigations will not compromise integrity of our investigations to win a case, we will give you scientific results.
FOCUS Fire Investigations will not seek additional examinations when they are not warranted, we will help you pursue justifiable cases.
What is the difference between a
"Fire Investigator"
and an
"Arson Investigator"
A Fire Investigator investigates fires.
A Fire Investigator may classify a fire as an incendiary fire which may then lead to the crime charge of Arson - arson isn't a crime until a criminal prosecution attorney decides it is.
Therefore there is no such thing as an Arson Investigator.
The International Association of Arson Investigators has contemplated may times changing the term "Arson" in the name but there are several reasons that it has not been changed.
FOCUS Fire Investigations currently practices in:
Alaska, Colorado, Idaho, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, and Wyoming
Partners in Fire Investigation:
FOCUS partners with Fire Trackers to extend our investigation capabilities in New Mexico, Texas, and the southern portions of Colorado
Residential
Multi-Family
Commercial
Industrial Origin and Cause
Vehicles
Heavy Equipment
Marine
Wildland
Automatic Suppression Systems
Kitchen Hoods, Paint Booths,
Fire sprinkler and fire alarm systems
Hazardous Material related fires
Case Reviews
Documentation of any incident scene (not just fires!)
Water damage
Wind damage
Structural collapse
Real Estate venturesSpecialization
Cigarettes always make gasoline blow up!
Alligatoring - bigger and deeper means accelerants were used
It was a hot, fast fire; they had to use gasoline
Spalled concrete means they used an accelerantFAQ's (aka) Myths and Legends
Sagging furniture springs mean the fire was really hot so they had to use gasoline
Low burning is a sign of Arson
Patterns on carpet means they poured gasoline!
News Bits of Interest
FOCUS started out as a private fire investigation company giving clients the real interpretation of their case.
As time progressed FOCUS found more and more need to provide analysis of other fire events and thus has expanded services to just that. An analysis of fire events and the reports generated by others.
FOCUS is a small company making a big impact. By not being a big company with several in-house experts FOCUS is able to retain the best expert for each assignment, not just who is on staff!
It is stated several times on our webpages and in our literature that FOCUS will not make your case, we will however provide you with the best fire investigation data to provide you with the best outcome of your case.
FOCUS Fire Investigations, LLC
Fire Origin and Cause Using Science
FOCUS Fire Investigations is a privately owned and operated expert fire origin and cause investigation company providing you with Certified Fire Investigators (IAAI-CFI/ECT) who will "FOCUS" on your fire investigation, analysis, and consulting needs to achieve the best outcome of your case.
In addition to following NFPA 921 - Guide for Fire and Explosion Investigations; FOCUS Fire Investigators follow NFPA 1033 - Standard for Professional Qualifications for Fire Investigator, and will be following NFPA 1321 - Standard for Fire Investigation Units when it is published. (FOCUS owner, Kevin, currently sits as an alternate on the 1321 committee)
We provide services to Colorado, Idaho, North Carolina, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, and Wyoming. We can also handle your cases in Alaska, Mississippi, Pennsylvania, and Rhode Island. We are soon to be expanding to Arizona, New Mexico, South Carolina, and Texas (we cannot yet accept cases in these states). Depending on specific state licensing requirements, we can also handle cases in other states. Contact us to find out if we can handle your case.
FOCUS can handle all your fire investigation needs including the original scene inspection, joint scene exams, evidence collection, case review and case analysis, deposition and expert courtroom testimony.
The FOCUS team has experience in all fields of fire investigation:
FOCUS fire investigators have all spent time in the public sector and understand complex incident command and case management.
FOCUS can easily handle your complex fire investigations involving multiple parties. (However; We won't turn a simple case into a complex one)
FOCUS Fire Investigators are retired firefighters and fighting fires allows us to see and understand how fire progresses. If you haven't seen the beast up close and in person it's difficult to understand it, FOCUS investigators understand the beast.
TEACHING / MENTORING
The FOCUS Fire Investigation team members are the investigators teaching other investigators about fire investigation from the basics for new investigators to advanced topics including burn cells.
We tailor the training to the audience; investigators, adjustors, legal councils, insureds... so that you get the best out of the training.
Prevention is always better than investigations. At FOCUS we will educate our clients and insureds about fire safety to avoid similar future incidents.
Prevention is the key to reducing risk.
SPECIALIZATION
The FOCUS team specializes in fires involving Automatic Extinguishing Systems (such as kitchen hood and paint booth systems) and structures with fire sprinkler systems and fire alarm systems, as well as Hazardous Materials.
BACK TO THE BASICS
Root Cause Analysis of the ignition is the ultimate key in determining who, or what, is responsible for any fire or explosion event. FOCUS will help you determine that root cause; not just what it may have been.
(Maybe, is not proper science!)
DOCUMENTATION
The job isn't done until the paperwork is done! It doesn't matter how incredible of an investigation you have done, it its not followed up with proper and complete paperwork it will fall apart. FOCUS provided detailed documentation of all investigation scene whether it is a simple 'no-report' fire or a case ready for court presentation.
The FOCUS team documents the incident scene through drawings, diagrams, interviews, photographs, and Matterport 3D imaging.
A LinkedIn blog designed for professional growth and engaging topics related to fire investigation and fire prevention with a new topic weekly.
FOCUS on Big and Small investigations.
OK, not so much the size of the investigation, rather the size of the investigation company. Is bigger better?
Before we delve into fire investigation companies lets look at another business and big vs. small. Hamburgers.... There are several large fast food chains who serve hamburgers. The hamburgers are the same in all the restaurants for that chain. I know what I'm going to get no matter if I'm in New York or Los Angeles or here at home the hamburger will be the same.
Consider that consistency against a burger from your local mom & pop burger joint. You never really know what you are going to get; how big will the burger be, how fresh is the meat, how well cooked is it...etc. There are a few of those mom & pop shops nearby me. I tend to steer away from one, but the other three I will go out of my way (bypassing the big chains) to eat their hamburgers. Big hand-pressed patties cooked the way I ask for it to be cooked, just right seasoning, my choice of cheese, lots of goodies stacked twice as tall as the chain burger. Most mom & pop shops (whatever they sell) are better than any of the big chain stores.
After owning my own business, FOCUS Fire Investigations, and watching how big and small fire investigation companies work I'm drawn to the smaller companies. Not at all to say the investigators with big companies are not good investigators by themselves, but for the most part they are given orders and directives and have a high minimum number of billable hours to reach and fires to visit. I remember one (big company) investigator at a joint scene inspection who advised the rest of us we needed to do this job quickly as he had been assigned two more fires to do an initial inspection of that day! Never mind three fires in one day, but he also had a two hour drive between each. It wasn't the insurance company driving the three in one day, it was his company driving that hard. I do know a few client companies who don't want to work with any expert companies who don't have at least a million dollar revenue. How did the investigation company get to that level of revenue? By sending their investigators to too many fires to be done properly and expecting a high minimum number of billable hours.
I've been in the fire service in one way or another for over 40 years. I've had my share of hurried meals. I know that when eating I like to relax, take my time, and enjoy my meal. Similar to doing a fire investigation, I would rather do the investigation in a relaxed mode, not worrying about getting to the next fire. I would rather take enough time to complete the investigation thoroughly, not missing anything so that I'm able to produce a better result for my clients. Paint a better picture for them as to what happened so they will be able to make a more informed decision on how to move forward.
FOCUS is small and therefore we are a little bit biased on the side of bigger is not necessarily better. There are some advantages to being a bigger company. You can take on more assignments and your investigators can share stories, experiences, and resources. Bigger companies many times have other experts beyond the Origin & Cause expert such as Electrical and Mechanical Engineers. Its great to have those resource right at hand.
Being a small company we don't have an in-house staff of engineers to rely on. No in-house staff of engineers affords FOCUS the ability to seek out the best resource for the situation. Sometimes that resource is nearby, sometimes that best resource is across the country. Being the small company we will always strive to produce the best result and not necessarily the fastest result to get to the next fire quicker. Being the small company we don't have a minimum number of hours to attain or a minimum number of fires to visit.
Sit back and take the time to enjoy the mom & pop burger.
We have more than 35 years in the fire service and over 20 of that in fire investigations, all fire investigators at FOCUS are IAAI-CFI ®
FOCUS Fire Investigations has the experience and training handle any of your fire and explosion needs. We can handle the very simple incident to complex incidents. Years of fire service has taught us complex incident management, but we will not turn a simple fire into a complex one.
FOCUS Fire Investigations will NOT “make your case”! We will find the best solutions for your case using real data and the science behind fire.
FOCUS team members all meet the NFPA 1033 standard qualifications and follow NFPA 921 and the Scientific Method, as well as other well accepted fire investigation books. All have contributed to NFPA, and FOCUS’s owner and chief investigator is a contributing author and editor to Fire Investigator—Principles and Practice to NFPA 921 and 1033, 5th edition.
At FOCUS we love to burn things to learn how the fire really started and progressed. We won't guess at an ignition, we will prove it with research and experiments when necessary, hence the name FOCUS—Fire Origin and Cause Using Science.
We will FOCUS on your incident so you can FOCUS on your case
meet the team
Kevin Crawford started his fire service career as a volunteer with the Vail (Colorado) Fire Department in 1980, then as a fulltime firefighter in 1983 when he started with the Provo (Utah) Fire Department. After a few years with Provo he discovered his passion for fire investigations and in 2003 Kevin retired from Provo to become a Fire Investigator with the Fire Prevention Division of North Metro Fire Rescue District in Broomfield, Colorado. Since that time Kevin’s fire service career has included fire prevention activities, life safety education, training, and conducting fire investigations in both the public and private sector.
Retiring after 34 years of public fire service in 2017, he continued his fire investigation career as a private sector fire investigator eventually starting his own company, FOCUS Fire Investigations, serving the Rocky Mountains region in Colorado and Utah until moving to North Carolina. He has conducted and assisted in origin and cause investigations for insurance companies, manufacturers and legal counsels.
Kevin also presents and teaches classes for the IAAI on fire investigations, NFPA 921, interviewing, and fire training; he is an alternate on the NFPA 1321 Committee; and sits on the IAAI EP&G Committee.
His favorite training is conducting live burns which assist fire investigators in understanding how and why the fire did what it did.
He is a past Training Coordinator and President of the Colorado Chapter and past Director of the International Association of Arson Investigators. In addition to Director he served as the Chairman of the IAAI’s Health and Safety Committee.
Kevin and Carrie currently live near Charlotte, North Carolina, where they are close to kids and grandkids.
Glen Powell
Glen Powell started his fire service career in 1983 when he joined a small volunteer fire department. Interestingly, one of the first classes Glen attended was the off campus version of the National Fire Academy’s Fire/Arson Detection; Glen has had an interest in fire investigation ever since.
In 1992, Glen began what would be an almost 28-year career with Pocatello (Idaho) Fire Department. During his career Glen held positions as firefighter/EMT, driver/operator, company officer, and code enforcement officer among others. Throughout his career, and as Captain of the Fire Prevention Bureau, Glen was able to continue training and gaining experience in the fire investigation discipline. In 2008, Glen became a full-time member of the departments fire investigation team. In 2016, Glen became a Certified Fire Investigator (CFI) through the International Association of Arson Investigators (IAAI), and in 2020 gained certification as a Certified Instructor, also with the IAAI. Glen enjoys sharing knowledge of fire investigation with others, particularly those just getting started in the field.
Glen has been a member of the International Association of Arson Investigators and the Idaho Chapter since 2011; A member of both the Nevada and Utah Chapters since 2018. Glen served on the Idaho Chapter training committee from 2015-2016, was elected 2nd Vice President in 2017; 1st Vice President in 2018, then Chapter President in 2019. Glen has attended each IAAI International Training Conference (ITC) since joining the Association. (2020 & 2021 conferences cancelled due to COVID)
Glen is married to his wife Joni of 28 years. They enjoy traveling, visiting with friends and family, and especially attending the International Association of Arson Investigator’s International Training Conference each year!
*FOCUS does not guarantee posting of training opportunities.
Preference given to training and certification bodies
Training must be fire investigation related (in our opinion)