Top Of His Class: EHFD Asst. Chief Chris Rosa Nails Fire Marshal Tests

EAST HAVEN, CT — To pass, one needs a minimum grade of 70% in written tests after completing training as a fire code inspector and fire investigator. East Haven Assistant Fire Chief Chris Rosa scorched both: he earned a 99% in investigation and a 95% in code enforcement.

You're in very skilled hands, East Haven.

Fire Chief Matt Marcarelli called the coursework "demanding."

Marcarelli said the training course, which was three days a week for about a year, is broken down into the two modules; one for fire investigation, and the other for code enforcement which deals with life safety issues related to fire safety and enforcement of the state fire safety code.

Rosa has been a member of the EHFD since 1997 serving as a dispatcher and volunteer firefighter then becoming a career firefighter in 2004. He was promoted to Battalion Chief in October 2020 and most recently Assistant Fire Chief in October 2021.

He is a veteran of the United States Air Force serving during the Gulf War. A licensed paramedic, he holds multiple certificates and certifications through the Connecticut Fire Academy.

In his role as Assistant Fire Chief, he has the collateral responsibility of serving as the Deputy Fire Marshal and assists Fire Marshal Charles Miller on enforcement actions and investigations.

There are four criteria that you must meet in order to become a certified fire marshal in Connecticut:

1. You must be certified as a Fire Code Inspector
2. You must be certified as a Fire Investigator
3. You must meet one of the minimum standards of qualification for local fire marshals, fire code inspectors or fire investigators as established in statute.
4. 4. You must attend a Mental Health First Aid for Fire Personnel training

To become a certified Fire Code Inspector or a certified Fire Investigator, you can either take a training course or take an examination.
The Pre-Certification Training Program has two components: The Fire Code Inspector module and the Fire Investigator module. Both modules are offered biannually (spring and fall semesters), and have exams built into the training. By scoring a minimum of 70% on the final exam, and by submitting the required documentation, you have earned certification. The Fire Code Inspector module will not be offered in fall of 2022 so that we may update the curriculum to the new Codes.
The written tests for Fire Code Inspector and Fire Investigator are offered four times a year (Challenge Exams), in February, May, August and November. Because of the length of each written exam, you can only take one exam per quarter.

The Fire Investigator exam also has a practical assessment, which is offered twice a year in April and November.