42 NoraNora couldn’t stop herself from returning the fire marshal’s grin.
“Do you have situations where you rule out arson as a cause right from the start?” she began.
“Of course,” Gunderson replied. “Let me give you a couple of examples. Maybe a smoker sets his bed on fire and it spreads to the entire apartment building. Or a cook ignites the grease in her fry pan, can’t extinguish the blaze, and loses her house. In either of those situations, the evidence speaks for itself. I don’t open an arson investigation when the situation is unambiguous.”
“Do you also have fires where you know immediately that you’re dealing with arson?”
He nodded judiciously. “Finding an incendiary device is clear proof of arson. Signs of forced entry raise a red flag. Especially if the fire spread rapidly and
