Final answer:
Water's high heat-absorbing capacity, due to its high specific heat capacity and high heat of vaporization, makes it valuable for extinguishing fires by absorbing a significant amount of heat. The option (C) is correct.
Step-by-step explanation:
The characteristic of water that makes it valuable for fire extinguishment is its high heat-absorbing capacity. Water has a high specific heat capacity, which is the amount of heat one gram of a substance must absorb to change its temperature by one degree Celsius. For water, this value is approximately one calorie, so it takes a long time for water to heat up and a long time to cool down.
This property is what allows water to absorb a significant amount of heat from a fire. Additionally, water has a high heat of vaporization, which means it requires a lot of energy to change from a liquid to a gas. This energy absorption is critical when using water to extinguish fires, as it helps to quickly reduce the temperature of the burning material. Therefore, option (C) is correct.