The Burning House...

[Glenn]

Originally Posted by Syr

Fire is dangerous and unpredictable. You should not stop for anything besides your loved ones, be they human or critter.

I know, that's why I only choose living in places that are on a first floor. I have smoke alarms in every room and check them regularly. It also would be a good idea to learn where to shut off your main gas line leading into the house. However, the fires I've been in, and have seen, there still was a little time left, to pick up a couple of extra things. We should never assume this to be true in every circumstance though. The OP simply assumed that loved ones would be already out,and that there was going to be five extra minutes.