Seoul City Implements 'Special Fire Investigator' Grading System... Fire Investigation Reliability Increases

Fire Investigators Evaluated on 10 Indices and Classified into 4 Detailed Grades

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] The Seoul Fire and Disaster Headquarters announced on the 22nd that it will implement a ‘Fire Investigator Grading System’ to enhance the reliability of fire investigations and strengthen job expertise.

Fire investigation is a specialized field that involves collecting data, site inspection, analysis, and appraisal to determine the cause of fires and assess the damage caused by them.

Currently, a total of 152 personnel, including those holding relevant certifications, are responsible for fire investigation duties at Seoul Fire Department. The importance of their work is increasing as the determination of fire causes leads to the establishment of fire prevention policies, compensation for damages, and other public fire safety services.

Accordingly, the Seoul Fire and Disaster Headquarters formed a policy advisory group consisting of five members, including professors from related departments, to promote the fire investigator grading system. The group has thoroughly reviewed the necessity of the grading system, detailed classification of grades, scoring criteria for each evaluation index, and methods to verify effectiveness after implementation.

Reflecting the advisory group’s review results, the grading system will be conducted once a year for frontline fire station personnel currently in charge of fire investigation and experienced personnel who wish to participate. Candidates will be evaluated based on 10 indices with a total score of 500 points and classified into four grades. The evaluation indices include △report writing △career △experience △certifications △completion of related academic courses △research, among others. The four grades are △Beginner △Intermediate △Advanced △Special Grade Fire Investigator.

After the grading system is implemented, certification emblems and certificates will be distributed to candidates according to their grades, and incentives commensurate with their expertise will be provided in personnel matters. Additionally, in the event of various fires, candidates will be deployed to fire investigation sites according to their job competencies.

As part of the specialization of fire investigation duties, the Fire and Disaster Headquarters has been operating a ‘Fire Evidence Appraisal Center’ on a trial basis at the Seoul Fire Academy since April last year. Through this, it aims to professionalize fire evidence appraisal and plans to establish a standard manual for fire evidence appraisal and build a computerized management system for fire evidence in the future.

Choi Tae-young, head of the Fire and Disaster Headquarters, said, “The fire investigator grading system will contribute to accurate determination of fire causes and strengthening of expertise. Based on this, we will pursue fire prevention policy establishment and securing citizen safety more thoroughly.”