Presenter: Patrick Kennedy

Though they are used extensively by the professional fire investigation community, misunderstandings about the nature and content of NFPA 921, Guide for Fire and Explosion Investigations, and its sister document NFPA 1033, Standard for Professional Qualifications for Fire Investigator, abound in the fire investigation industry. These “myths and mysteries” tend to depreciate the value of the documents, especially among those who need their guidance the most. This is caused by failures to understand and appreciate the nature of the NFPA consensus code promulgation system, the history of the fire investigation profession, the nature and history of NFPA 921 and NFPA 1033 themselves, and even the semantics of the documents. This session is designed to expose and explain what many see as the “myths and mysteries” and perceived shortcomings of these seminal documents.