Final answer:
The greatest challenge for firefighters at garden apartment fires includes uncertainty and potential extreme danger due to inaccessible layouts and rapidly spreading fires, highlighted by historical incidents like the New York City building fire.
Step-by-step explanation:
The greatest challenge for firefighters at garden apartment fires is the potential for extreme physical danger due to the uncertainty surrounding the intensity of the fire or hazards that they may encounter upon responding to an alarm. In high-density residential buildings such as garden apartments, firefighters may face difficulties with accessibility, complex layouts, and fires that spread quickly, often exacerbated by locked doors or inadequate escape routes.
The historical example of the fire in the New York City building, where firefighters' ladders were insufficient in reaching the affected floors, illustrates the challenges in rescuing people from higher stories and the potential hazards to both victims and firefighters. Firefighters must perform a variety of tasks such as searching burning buildings, rescuing victims, administering first aid, and assessing fires, which all require courage, skill, and quick decision-making under life-threatening conditions.