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Fire Investigators

Also called: Fire Investigator, Fire Marshal, Arson Investigator, State Fire Marshal

What they do:
Conduct investigations to determine causes of fires and explosions.
On the job, you would:
  • Examine fire sites and collect evidence such as glass, metal fragments, charred wood, and accelerant residue for use in determining the cause of a fire.
  • Photograph damage and evidence related to causes of fires or explosions to document investigation findings.
  • Analyze evidence and other information to determine probable cause of fire or explosion.

Knowledge

Safety and Government
  • law and government
  • public safety and security
Math and Science
  • psychology
  • chemistry
Business
  • customer service
  • management
Arts and Humanities
  • English language

Skills

Basic Skills
  • listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions
  • talking to others
Problem Solving
  • noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it
Social
  • changing what is done based on other people's actions
  • teaching people how to do something

Abilities

Verbal
  • communicate by speaking
  • listen and understand what people say
Ideas and Logic
  • make general rules or come up with answers from lots of detailed information
  • use rules to solve problems
Visual Understanding
  • see hidden patterns
  • quickly compare groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things

Personality

People interested in this work like activities that include
ideas, thinking, and figuring things out.
They do well at jobs that need:
  • Integrity
  • Attention to Detail
  • Dependability
  • Analytical Thinking
  • Initiative
  • Stress Tolerance

Technology

Examples of the technology used in this career will be available soon.

Education

Education: (rated 3 of 5)
some college or
associate's degree
usually needed

Get started on your career:

Find Training Find Certifications Registered Apprenticeship

Job Outlook

Below Average Outlook
New job opportunities are less likely in the future.
Salary
$53,330
per year, on average
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See more details at O*NET OnLine about fire investigators.