We didn’t have a fire, per se (just some smoke in the furnace room due to some burning insulation in the furnace blower). They had determined that there was no fire fairly quickly.
The firemen went around the house, including up into the attic through the crawlspace, to confirm absence-of-fire, with thermal cameras everywhere. They also took a look around the house to look for places that might be fire hazards in general.
Pretty sure some of that was that they were having a thankfully slow day (5 trucks, the fire chief, and an ambulance showed up!).
Had there been an actual fire, we’d have learned more about what they do afterward!
Firemen around here will help board up a building after a fire, sometimes. It’s part of the safety follow up needed to keep people out of a damaged building. That may be taken care of by private contractors but in some cases the steps must be taken immediately. Sometimes the only step needed to allow people to return to a damaged building is boarding up a window or two. It can be something to do to get people back inside during inclement weather. The police and other municipal services might help also.
That is how I remember it as a volunteer FF.
that and you have to destroy the clothes you have on under your bunker (turnout) gear. You will never get the smell out.
My gear was in my trunk … I lived on the opposite side of town. I responded to the scene instead of the firehouse.
We get called out by insurance to secure the site when there is a large house fire. Usually a fire watch is left on site to monitor hot spots for 12 hours or more, sometimes longer in sub freezing temperatures where icy debris can insulate a potential reignition spot. A Cause and Loss team will investigate the site usually the next day
There will be a fire marshal or supervisor on site that we report to. They instruct us as to what they need from us and release the site to us when they are ready.
Usually we install perimeter fence and provide 24 hour security until cause and loss are finished their investigation and have ruled out further risk of arson or site tampering.
Malicious arson is a disturbingly common factor.