Here are some pictures from one of the five classes I taught at the Army and Navy Academy combining Fire Science, Fire Safety / Prevention, and Writing Short Stories.
First we watched the NOVA DVD: "Hunt for the Serial Arsonist".
Then I gave a lecture on Fire Safety and Prevention relating it to a large fire that we had on campus quite a few years back, which burned down Anderson Hall.
I explained that cadet had been cooking with a Sterno Fuel Canister (which was considered contraband), when his TAC officer knocked on the door for a room inspection. The cadet got scared, tossed the Sterno Canister into his footlocker, shut the lid, and stood at attention as his TAC entered the room. The Sterno fuel ignited the contents of his footlocker, and despite attempts by the cadet and TAC to put the fire out, it took over the room, flashed over, and eventually burned down the entire wing of the cadet dormitory that we now know as Anderson Hall.
Anderson has since been rebuilt from the ground up from what used to be the old single story dormitory to what is now a massive two story structure.
Since we have dominant number of Asian cadets who smoke on a regular basis, since it is legal for them to do so back home, the smoking problem on campus is astronomical. Despite known penalties and the possibility of dismissal from the Academy for smoking, many of our 350 cadets do it anyway. I decided to target that majority while teaching ALL of my cadets how quickly their dorm room can go up in less than 4 minutes from a simple cigarette accidentally dropped into a piece of furniture.
I explained that air + fuel = fire (flame) and taught them how a candle that has been lit, can reignite after it has been blown out, without another fire source even touching the wick. I explained that the smoke that they would see rising from the candle is actually a gaseous vapor which acts as a fuel. Then I explained that most pillows, internal stuffing material, and padding found in modern furniture, mattresses, and pillows are petroleum based products which can act as an accelerant fuel very similar to the wax from a candle when ignited. I showed them how their room can go from normal to reaching 1000 degrees Fahrenheit, leading to flash-over from the chemical break down of the contents of the room from the extreme heat, to an eventual back-draft in less than 4 minutes, from only one accidentally dropped lit-cigarette.
This blew their minds.
I moved on to explain how a team of victims, witnesses, firefighters, a fire-marshal / investigator(s), and even ATF agents combine their expertise with forensic science to catch an arsonist.
I tried to discourage them from arson activity by explaining that IT IS IMPOSSIBLE for ANYONE to get away with ANY crime in today's day and age with the presence of forensic science. Eventually the criminal is going to get caught, no matter what.
We covered the use of forensic graphs which can break down the chemical structure of a known fuel, and showed its relation to an identical fuel found at the scene of an investigation.
I explained that typically, a human lives three lives (social, home, and private/secret). I also explained how a person can lose control of their secret life and commit such a crime as arson.
I explained the six categories of arson (vandalism, excitement, revenge, profit, extremists, crime concealment) and the subcategory of "serial arsonist".
I explained the psychological profile of a Serial Arsonist (loner, possible alcoholic, history of failed relationships, physical deformities or defects, a spotty work history, feeling / seeking a sense of power, etc.)
We covered the construction and breakdown of an arsonist's incendiary device made simply from a cigarette, 3 matches, and a rubber-band. I explained that this is used by the arsonist as a time-delay device, which can be used to buy them the time they need to get away from the scene of the fire / investigation (from two minutes up to an hour in some cases).
We went on to finish the "Hunt for the Serial Arsonist" DVD and discussed the ironic twist behind the story of the arsonist apprehended for all of the California fires being a firefighter/fire investigator himself.
We discussed the feeling of betrayal that the other firefighters, investigators, law enforcement officers and other professionals must have felt after knowing that the main suspect and actual serial arsonist was right there among them sifting through the wreckage of each fire as if he were just doing his normal duty. What a traitor John Orr was. He was responsible for millions of dollars in structural damage and property loss, as well as the loss of several human lives. It is sad to know that a type of human being exists with the capability and drive to deliberately seek a heroic job in the field of saving lives, to feed his warped and morbid obsession with power and pyro.
As a final assignment, I assigned each class to brainstorm everything they learned from the DVD and my instruction. I told them to organize their thoughts and notes into a model for a fictional short story similar to the Novel that John Orr was writing from the point of view of his character "Aaron". I instructed them to "get into the mind of their main character" and "think like the main character" and tell the story from the vantage point or point of view of that character. I told them that the story can be as far out and creative as they want to make it. However, they had to choose their main character from the following: the arsonist, victim, witness, firefighter (any rank that might be on the scene: Firefighter I, II, EMT, Paramedic, EMT-Paramedic, Lieutenant, Captain, Battalion Chief, Chief, fire marshal, fire investigator), or ATF Agent.
The assignment will be due on Friday of next week.
I'll post the best of the best, with cadet permission of course.
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