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NFIRS 5.0 Element: ‘Cause of Ignition’

Also known as: ‘Cause of Ignition’ ‘causeOfIgnition’

Definition: The general causal factor that resulted in a heat source igniting a combustible material.The cause could be the result of a deliberate act, mechanical failure, or act of nature.

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Relational Edit Rules for ‘Cause of Ignition’

NFIRS 5.0 relational edit validation rules are provided to ensure NFIRS data is consistent and correct for the fire/reporting concepts that are being modeled. Relational edits determine relationships between multiple fields / elements. These are the rules for ‘Cause of Ignition’.

Rule Group  Overview 
Relational Edit Rule 51 Cause of Ignition ‘Other’ for Exposures.
Relational Edit Rule 52 Factors Required for Unintentional Cause.
Relational Edit Rule 53 relational edit rule 53.
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NFIRS Coding

Here are the NFIRS codes for the ‘Cause of Ignition’ element, including any “other” values in case none of the preselected choices match:

All values for Cause of Ignition

Cause of Ignition  Code 
Intentional. 1
Unintentional. 2
Failure Of Equipment or Heat Source. 3
Act Of Nature. 4
Cause Under Investigation. 5
Cause - Other (system Generated Code Only, Not Used For Data Entry). 0
Cause Undetermined After Investigation. U

Transactions containing ‘Cause of Ignition’

A few NFIRS elements are reused accross a number of transactions, but typically the value is captured by one transaction only.

Element Specification

 Specification   Value 
Requirement Mandatory
Expected Length 1
Element Type Coded Field - The coded field relating to an entry in the code table. Most coded fields allow for Plus+ One codes. For these fields the expected length of the coded entry is depicted as (National length OR Plus+ One length). Only fields with this notation in the expected length column allow for Plus+ One definitions. If the user has not provided information, an empty field should be transmitted.
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