Professional Investigative Engineers - Articles -

Investigations of Wildfire and the Growing Natural Hazard

no@spam.com (Jeffrey A. Berino, CCFI, CFEI) — Fri, 01 Jun 2007 14:57:10 CDT

The wildfire problems of the United States continue to plague homeowners, firefighters,and insurers. In fact, the drought of the western U.S. is going into its 10th year, and its effects are showing increasingly. Georgia experienced its largest wildfire in history in April of 2007. A large, stubborn wildfire tied up federal resources in the Lake Superior region for several weeks in 2006. The state of California in particular continues to be plagued with high-loss fires. During the large Oakland fire several decades ago, one home was being consumed every 45 seconds.

Pyrotechnic Fireworks: Beautiful But Dangerous

no@spam.com (Jeffrey A. Berino, CCFI, CFEI) — Fri, 01 Jul 2005 12:38:46 CDT

For hundreds of years, fireworks have been used for celebration and entertainment, especially in eastern Asia and Japan. The desire for fireworks spread to the United States, and they now are common on New Year’s Day, the Fourth of July, and other special celebrations.

Investigative Challenges in Todays Wildfires

no@spam.com (Jeffrey A. Berino, CCFI, CFEI) — Tue, 01 Apr 2003 17:30:00 CST

The wildfire season started early in 2002. Colorado experienced significant wildfires in early April at altitudes up to 10,000 feet. Snow is usually still falling at this time in the mountains and foothills, but low snow pack and warm temperatures led to an early wildfire season.

As portions of the U.S. experience extreme drought with an uncertain future, for the next few seasons we can expect to see an increase in the amount of wildfires. According to the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho, in 2002 there were 73,457 reported wildfires in the U.S. with over 71,847 acres burned. With wildfires destroying hundreds of homes in the western United States last year, determining the cause of the wildfires has become an important issue for many insurance companies.