Youth Firesetters

Youth SAFETY Program

The Services Aimed at Fire Education and Treatment for Youth (SAFETY) Program is a Court- or CYF-ordered therapy program for treatment of firesetting behaviors.

• SAFETY Program Letter(PDF, 130KB)
• SAFETY Brochure

Definition

Youth firesetting is defined as any unsanctioned use of, or involvement with, ignition materials where the intent is to produce a flame or fire.

Background

The problem of youth firesetting is significantly more widespread than our current statistical analyses show. According to the United States Fire Administration (USFA), 25% to 40% of incendiary structure fires can be attributed to children playing with matches or lighters.

However this takes into account only those structure fires for which there is a public safety response. In several published studies it was shown that child firesetters set, on the average, 5 fires that are extinguished and not reported to the authorities prior to the incident that gains them the attention of outside officials.

Another indication of the true scope of the problem is that it more often involves non-structural fires (e.g.: dumpsters, brush and other scenarios) which are not factored into the arson statistics. The safest approach for an fire investigator to take, particularly when a fire involves a home where children reside, is to first determine if a child or adolescent as a possible source of ignition.

Locations that are particularly indicative of child-set fires

• Under and around beds
• Under and behind couches or chairs
• In closets
• In basements or attics, on porches or areas the child perceives of as "hidden"
• In bathrooms, over the sink
• In a living room, over an ashtray

Clearly, children can and do sets fires anywhere, but the above locations are the most frequent scenarios.

Materials that are particularly indicative of child-set fires

• Use of matches and lighters as ignition devices
• Ordinary combustibles such as paper and clothing that are readily available
• Toys, school papers, particular possessions of adults for which a child went to some degree of difficulty to attain and/or ignite

Implications for Connecting Investigation to Intervention

Firesetting behavior is complex and dynamic, but it requires two distinct sets of skills and bodies of information to fully understand and intervene with it.

The first set of skills belong to fire investigators who can reconstruct what the child actually did.

The second set of skills belong to child development specialists who can explain why and prescribe the appropriate course of action to reduce the likelihood of recidivism. This has to be the primary goal of intervention, since firesetting behavior without treatment has an 81% probability of recidivism. With appropriate treatment, there is only a 10% probability of recidivism.

The key to appropriate treatment is in the work of the fire investigator, since the best clinicians in the world cannot operate without at least some incontrovertible facts from which to gauge the child's honesty, awareness, intent and mental state.