What is the discovery of an incident through motorists' reports or responder observations called?

• A. Verification
• B. Notification
• C. Conspicuity
• D. Detection

Answer: (D)

Detecting an incident based on a motorist’s report or a responder’s observation is detection. It’s the moment you recognize that something has happened and where it is, which starts the incident-management process. This differs from conspicuity, which is about how visible the scene is to approaching drivers and thus how quickly it might be noticed; from notification, which is the act of informing the appropriate agency that the incident exists; and from verification, which is confirming the details of the incident after it’s detected. For example, a driver calls in about a crash, or a responder on scene observes damage and confirms there’s an incident. That recognition is detection.