A main job of the fire and life safety educator is countering the delayed recognition of a fire threat. Choose the sentence that best exemplifies this concept.

• A. When the alarm sounds, always leave the building
• B. Investigate every unusual odor before evacuating
• C. Keep doors closed during drills
• D. Ignore false alarms to avoid panic

Answer: (A)

Prompt recognition and immediate action when a fire threat is detected is what this item is assessing. The best sentence is the one that tells people to leave the building as soon as the alarm sounds. This reinforces acting on the alert without hesitation or trying to verify the threat, which is exactly how to counter delayed recognition and reduce exposure to danger.

Why this fits best: it models an automatic, safety-first response. Evacuating promptly upon alarm helps ensure occupants are out of the building and accounted for, rather than delaying to investigate or second-guess the situation.

Why the other ideas don’t fit: investigating an unusual odor before evacuating creates time for the fire to grow and for people to become exposed to greater risk. Keeping doors closed during drills is about controlling fire spread during training, not about recognizing or responding to a real threat. ignoring false alarms teaches people not to trust alarms, which undermines prompt evacuation and safety.