Fire Inspectors and Investigators
Inspect buildings to detect fire hazards and enforce local ordinances and state laws, or investigate and gather facts to determine cause of fires and explosions.
13,800 people do this job in the US. $75,920 a year.
of the working time. Estimate.
- 55%
- 5%
- 40%
Measured, from Anthropic's usage data (2025). Counts help on part of a task.
On the chosen pace and reliability. Estimate.
Share of the working time within reach, now to 2030
What each choice means: , , , , . Every pace starts from .
At this date and pace, models finish tasks up to 4.4 h long four times in five.
How far this has come
With GPT-4, measured in March 2023, 0% of this job's working time was within reach at . With Claude 3.7 Sonnet, measured in February 2025, 0%. With Claude Mythos Preview (early), measured in April 2026, 10%. Today's estimate: 15%.
A backcast: today's task data with the best model METR had measured by each date. It shows how fast the models have moved, not what anyone forecast at the time.
The tasks
Sorted by . 30 tasks from .
| Task | Kind | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Write detailed reports of fire inspections performed, fire code violations observed, and corrective recommendations offered.Done daily by most who do it. | 15% | 3.3 h50 min to 6.7 h | 32%Half by Jan 2027 | |
| Analyze evidence and other information to determine probable cause of fire or explosion.Done more than yearly by most who do it. | 13% | 6.7 h1.7 h to 2.5 work days | 8%Half by Sep 2027 | |
| Develop and coordinate fire prevention programs, such as false alarm billing, fire inspection reporting, and hazardous materials management.Done yearly or less by most who do it. | 12% | 2.1 work days6.7 h to 1.4 work weeks | 1%Half by Mar 2028 | |
| Inspect buildings to locate hazardous conditions and fire code violations, such as accumulations of combustible material, electrical wiring problems, and inadequate or non-functional fire exits.Done daily by most who do it. | 12% | 2.1 h38 min to 5 h | Stays with people | |
| Conduct inspections and acceptance testing of newly installed fire protection systems.Done more than yearly by most who do it. | 6% | 3.3 h1.3 h to 1 work day | Stays with people | |
| Inspect and test fire protection or fire detection systems to verify that such systems are installed in accordance with appropriate laws, codes, ordinances, regulations, and standards.Done daily by most who do it. | 6% | 2.5 h50 min to 6.7 h | Stays with people | |
| Supervise staff, training them, planning their work, and evaluating their performance.Done yearly or less by most who do it. | 4% | 2.5 h50 min to 6.7 h | Stays with people | |
| Identify corrective actions necessary to bring properties into compliance with applicable fire codes, laws, regulations, and standards, and explain these measures to property owners or their representatives.Done daily by most who do it. | 4% | 50 min25 min to 2.5 h | 95%Half by now | |
| Inspect properties that store, handle, and use hazardous materials to ensure compliance with laws, codes, and regulations, and issue hazardous materials permits to facilities found in compliance.Done more than yearly by most who do it. | 4% | 2.8 h1.3 h to 6.7 h | Stays with people | |
| Conduct fire code compliance follow-ups to ensure that corrective actions have been taken in cases where violations were found.Done daily by most who do it. | 4% | 50 min25 min to 2.5 h | Stays with people | |
| Review blueprints and plans for new or remodeled buildings to ensure the structures meet fire safety codes.Done more than monthly by most who do it. | 3% | 2.5 h50 min to 1 work day | 40%Half by Dec 2026 | |
| Develop or review fire exit plans.Done more than monthly by most who do it. | 2% | 1.7 h25 min to 3.3 h | 65%Half by now |
Within reach, per task: the share of the task's time whose instances are short enough for a model to finish at the chosen date, pace and reliability. Half by: the date half of that time comes within reach.
Jobs that share skills with this one
From O*NET's related occupations. Within reach now and by the end of 2028, long-run pace, four in five.
- Fire-Prevention and Protection Engineers5% now, 61% by 2028
- Firefighters3% now, 3% by 2028
- Forest Fire Inspectors and Prevention Specialists15% now, 16% by 2028
- First-Line Supervisors of Firefighting and Prevention Workers21% now, 29% by 2028
- Construction and Building Inspectors24% now, 48% by 2028
- Occupational Health and Safety Specialists16% now, 61% by 2028
Where this job works
The industry groups that employ the most of it (BLS, May 2025).
Where the most of these jobs are
The metro areas with the most people in it (BLS, May 2025).