The Office of the State Fire Marshal is dedicated to protecting the lives and property of the citizens of Kansas from the hazards of fire, explosion and hazardous materials. Our aim is to reduce the deaths, injuries, and property losses of Kansans through:
- Inspection
- Enforcement
- Regulation
- Investigation
- Hazardous material incident mitigation
- Public education
The OSFM is organized into four divisions: Hazardous Materials, Investigation, Prevention, and Administration.
- The Prevention Division is focused on preventing accidental fires from beginning.
- Hazardous Materials focuses on the actual response to emergencies by training and supporting response teams throughout the state.
- The Investigations Division determines the origin and cause of fires, aiding in the prosecution of arsonists and seeking out new or unknown fire hazards.
The programs the OSFM directs include plans review, licensing, enforcement, fireworks and explosives, accelerant detection, public education, firefighter training, information technology, and a video lending library.
Doug Jorgensen served as the interim State Fire Marshal from January 2011 -July 2011 and then was permanently appointed by Governor Brownback to the position in July 2012.
Mr. Jorgensen served for 28 years with the Kansas Bureau of Investigation, retiring in June of 2010.
The agency maintains the Kansas Fire Incident Reporting System (KFIRS). This is a state-wide data collection system for fire and emergency incidents. After a fire department responds to an emergency scene, a KFIRS report is submitted to the State Fire Marshal's Office. These reports are then submitted to the National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS). KFIRS reports include information on incident type, responding personnel, equipment and resources used, and firefighter injuries or fatalities.
The OSFM also maintains two other databases: the Kansas Burn Injury Reporting System and the Kansas Insurance Loss Reporting System. Hospitals across Kansas are required to submit notification to this agency when patients have received burns over 20% of their entire body. This information aids in fire prevention and investigation. Insurance companies are required to submit a report for every insurance loss over $500 due to fire. This database helps reveal the scope of economic loss due to fire within the state of Kansas.