FY2019 Arlington Fire Department Annual Report FY 2019 | Page 44

fire prevention
Managed by a Deputy Chief / Fire Marshal, this section houses both the Fire
Investigation and Inspection Units, Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) Team, and
issues permits for hazardous operations and fire detection / suppression systems.
As certified peace officers, the Investigation Unit investigates causes of
fires and is responsible for conducting internal investigations, ensuring
the public’s and employee’s interests and rights are safeguarded.
Fire Inspectors are responsible for periodic inspection of commercial / public buildings,
licensed facilities / operations, and other buildings in the City, as well as conducting
Certificate of Occupancy inspections for new businesses. They inspect fire detection /
suppression systems and play a key role in crowd management at large-scale venues.
deputy Chief / fire marshal
darin niederhaus
inspection activities
New Occupancy Fire Inspections 5,742
Annual Fire Inspections 1,506
Violations Written 3,606
Violations Corrected 3,009
Commercial Building / Fire Permits 2,229
Certificate of Occupancy 1,641
Fire Complaint / Courtesy Inspections 1,381
Mobile Food Units 56
Gas Well Inspections 220
Open Records Requests 786
Total Fire Inspections 20,176
Prevention Investigations by year
In FY18, AFD experienced a significant increase in the number of EOD calls.  The average number of EOD
calls for FY13-FY17 was 96.2 calls per year compared to 189 EOD-related calls responded to in FY18.
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The City’s Special Events, along with national, state, and local incidents, are the primary drivers of AFD EOD
calls, and changing realities have caused the Department to modify its response model as the EOD mission
becomes increasingly dynamic. Maintaining a sustainable investigative and interdiction capability that keeps
pace with this growing mission is a primary concern for the Department.