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Arson Bureau
The Lima Fire Department includes a full-time Arson Bureau designed to
aid in determining the cause and origin of all fires, as well as the
investigation and prosecution of the crime of arson. The Bureau consists
of one investigator, who is on call 24-hours a day, to respond to the
fire scene as quickly as possible. Also available are assisting
personnel, trained in arson investigation, that are responding
firefighters to the scene. They help preserve the scene and aid in the
investigation.
The Arson Bureau for the Lima Fire Department began in 1973 on a $30,000
federal grant through the Law Enforcement Assistance Administration (L.E.A.A.)
and the efforts of then Platoon Chief Rollin Kerzee. By March of 1974,
Chief Kerzee had the Bureau in full swing with as many as four
firefighters trained to help him with the investigations. When Chief
Kerzee returned to his duties as a fire officer, Investigator Ron
Straker took over as head of the Bureau. Investigator Albert Truesdale
was next to handle the job on the retirement of Straker.
Jon Jenkins is currently assigned as Arson Investigator, taking over
after the retirement of Al Truesdale in 1994. Appointed to the
department in 1986, he had 8 years of firefighting experience before his
promotion to the Investigator's position. Investigator Jenkins is a
graduate of the Ohio Police Academy in 1996 and commissioned through the
Lima Police Department. All personnel trained to do investigations
through the Arson Bureau receive that training at the Ohio Fire Academy
in Reynoldsburg, Ohio.
Protection of lives and property, along with upholding the law are of
first and foremost importance in the Arson Bureau, as it is with the
entire Lima Fire Department. If this office can be of service, please
feel free to contact them at 419/221-5163. |
