I still don't think we should throw the fire investigators under the bus as a whole. I personally blame the media for the hype they throw into news reporting. For some reason, the phrase "electrical fire" adds more drama to the news article than the typical causes for household fires.
Typical scenario: News reporter observes a firefighter looking at a burned wire on the scene and presto, it becomes an electrical fire as the report states:
"Montgomery County firefighter examines charred wiring as cause for apartment building fire that left sixteen families homeless. Story at eleven".
Or:
"Utility workers making repairs at a local office building may have caused a three alarm fire, forcing the evacuation of 200 workers."
OK, maybe the utility workers were there to change a meter? Maybe it was the phone company that was there earlier? Just because they were on the premises earlier and someone mentions this to the media, all of a sudden it becomes an electrical fire.
