Read the following article from a website.
The Kamloops parks board is deciding whether to let people book the city’s fixed park grills online on the same day. At the moment, families must fill in a paper form at city hall and wait up to five days for approval. Last year the city received more than 300 complaints about the paper forms. The city has forty-six fixed grills spread across eleven parks, and most summer weekends they are fully booked. Supporters want a faster system, but fire officials worry about dry, windy weekends.
Agata Lamothe, who runs community programs for the parks department, wants same-day online permits. “A long wait does not stop anyone from grilling,” she said. “It just sends them to an empty patch of lawn with a portable charcoal grill, far from any water.” Lamothe says a pilot in two parks last summer showed another benefit. “When families could cancel with one click, other people took their spot, and far fewer grills sat empty,” Lamothe said.
Laszlo Kerr, the city’s fire prevention officer, warns that faster permits would add pressure in drought weeks. “Our weekend crews are already thin,” Kerr said. “Two brush fires last August started near coals that someone left behind. Both were put out quickly, but we were lucky.” He is not against online booking, as long as it comes with checks. “I want staff to check that a bucket of water is beside every grill when each group arrives,” he added.
Thuy Larochelle, a mother who organizes neighbourhood picnics, says the real problem is the schedule. “Working families can’t book a weekday slot after five o’clock, so they bring small grills and set them up next to the playground. Nobody wants that, but they have no other choice,” she said. Sipho Kellerman, an emergency management analyst, says the booking system itself could help. “Nobody at the front desk should have to watch the forecast by hand,” Kellerman said. “The software can read wind alerts and stop approvals on its own when the risk is high,” he added.
Using the drop-down menu (▾), choose the best option according to the information given on the website.
Paragraph two mainly presents 2..
Laszlo Kerr warns that faster permits would lead to 3..
Thuy Larochelle would likely say that families with small grills 4..
What matters to everyone quoted is 5..
The following is a comment by a visitor to the website page. Complete the comment by choosing the best option to fill in each blank.
AI explanationShows the answer. Tap to open.
Correct Answer: a faster way to book park grills
Why this is correct: The parks board is deciding whether to let people book fixed grills online on the same day. Every speaker reacts to that idea.
Passage Reference: The Kamloops parks board is deciding whether to let people book the city’s fixed park grills online on the same day.
Tips: Ask what decision the board is about to make. Choose the answer that names that change in simple words.
Why the other options are wrong:
- a ban on charcoal in city parks: Charcoal grills come up in Lamothe’s example. Nobody wants to ban them.
- new equipment for city playgrounds: A playground is mentioned once, but nobody plans new equipment.
- a plan to hire more firefighters: Kerr says his crews are thin, but no hiring plan is described.
Correct Answer: a parks worker’s case and what a pilot showed
Passage Reference: Agata Lamothe, who runs community programs for the parks department, wants same-day online permits. ... Lamothe says a pilot in two parks last summer showed another benefit.
Why this is correct: “Paragraph two” quotes Lamothe, who runs parks programs and wants same-day permits. It ends with what her pilot in two parks showed.
Tips: Go back to “Paragraph two” and decide what job its sentences do. Test each option against that job, not against lines from elsewhere.
Why the other options are wrong:
- the fire safety checks one officer wants: Kerr asks staff to check each grill when a group arrives. His words come after “Paragraph two”.
- the number of grills and the delays families face: The grill count and the wait for paper forms open the article. They are not in “Paragraph two”.
- a parent’s view that evening times are the problem: Larochelle says the schedule is the real problem. She is quoted at the end of the article, not in “Paragraph two”.
Correct Answer: extra strain on fire crews in dry weeks
Passage Reference: warns that faster permits would add pressure in drought weeks ... Our weekend crews are already thin
Why this is correct: Kerr warns that faster permits would add pressure in drought weeks. He adds that his weekend crews are already thin.
Tips: Look at each line Kerr speaks or the reporter gives him. Ask which outcome he actually names, and set aside outcomes that belong to other people.
Why the other options are wrong:
- more families grilling far from any water: Lamothe says the long wait sends families to lawns far from water. Kerr does not predict this.
- more grills sitting empty on weekends: Lamothe’s pilot found fewer empty grills, not more. Kerr never talks about empty grills.
- longer waits for a paper form: Faster permits would mean shorter waits. Kerr does not say the wait would grow.
Correct Answer: would use the fixed grills if evening slots were open
Passage Reference: Working families can’t book a weekday slot after five o’clock, so they bring small grills and set them up next to the playground. Nobody wants that, but they have no other choice
Why this is correct: Larochelle says working families cannot book a weekday slot after five, so they bring small grills. Nobody wants that, she adds, so they would book a fixed grill if they could.
Tips: Stay with what Larochelle says in her quotes. An option only counts if her words lead to it, not someone else’s.
Why the other options are wrong:
- do not care about fire safety in parks: Larochelle says nobody wants the small grills by the playground. She never says these families are careless.
- should pay a fine for cooking on the lawn: No one in the article asks for fines. Larochelle blames the schedule, not the families.
- would rather cook at home than in a park: Larochelle says these families still come to the park. Nothing suggests they would rather stay home.
Correct Answer: keeping outdoor cooking safe
Passage Reference: It just sends them to an empty patch of lawn with a portable charcoal grill, far from any water. ... Both were put out quickly, but we were lucky. ... they bring small grills and set them up next to the playground. Nobody wants that ... The software can read wind alerts and stop approvals on its own when the risk is high
Why this is correct: Lamothe worries about grills far from water, and Kerr about fires near old coals. Larochelle says nobody wants grills next to the playground, which is unsafe, and Kellerman would stop approvals on risky days.
Tips: Check each option against Lamothe, Kerr, Larochelle and Kellerman one at a time. Accept it only if each of them shows, in their own words, that it matters to them.
Why the other options are wrong:
- a quick yes for every permit: Lamothe wants same-day permits, but Kerr wants checks, and Kellerman would stop approvals on risky days.
- more staff on weekend fire crews: Only Kerr says his crews are thin. No one else talks about fire crews.
- a staff check at every grill: Only Kerr asks staff to check each grill. The others do not ask for it.
Correct Answer: five days
Passage Reference: wait up to five days for approval
Why this is correct: Families must wait up to five days for approval.
Tips: Look for how long families wait under the paper system.
Why the other options are wrong:
- two days: Families can wait longer than two days.
- three days: Families can wait longer than three days.
- four days: The article allows a longer wait than four days.
Correct Answer: forty-six
Passage Reference: The city has forty-six fixed grills spread across eleven parks
Why this is correct: The city has forty-six fixed grills spread across eleven parks.
Tips: The article gives a number of grills and a number of parks. Make sure you choose the right one.
Why the other options are wrong:
- eleven: Eleven is the number of parks, not grills.
- forty: The city has a few more grills than forty.
- sixty-four: The city has fewer grills than sixty-four.
Correct Answer: August
Passage Reference: Two brush fires last August started near coals that someone left behind.
Why this is correct: Kerr says two brush fires last August started near coals that someone left behind.
Tips: Read the fire officer’s example of what went wrong. Find the month he gives.
Why the other options are wrong:
- June: June is not mentioned in the article.
- July: July is the commenter’s picnic month, not when the fires happened.
- September: September is not mentioned in the article.
Correct Answer: bucket of water
Passage Reference: I want staff to check that a bucket of water is beside every grill when each group arrives
Why this is correct: Kerr wants staff to check that a bucket of water is beside every grill when each group arrives.
Tips: The commenter means the fire officer. Find the item he wants staff to look for.
Why the other options are wrong:
- fire extinguisher: Kerr asks for water, not an extinguisher.
- bag of sand: Kerr does not ask for sand.
- garden hose: Kerr asks for a bucket of water, not a hose.
Correct Answer: forecast
Passage Reference: Nobody at the front desk should have to watch the forecast by hand
Why this is correct: Kellerman says nobody at the front desk should have to watch the forecast by hand.
Tips: The commenter repeats the analyst’s words about a clerk’s job. Find the thing he says a person should not need to watch.
Why the other options are wrong:
- fire ban list: Kellerman does not mention a fire ban list.
- park map: Kellerman does not mention a map.
- fire index: Kellerman names the forecast, not a fire index.
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